The eighth Presidency of this State has begun impressively with a well-crafted inauguration address by the President, Mrs McAleese, in which she placed an appropriate and timely emphasis on the prize of peace and the task of reconciliation. Those in attendance and those watching on television will have been impressed by the assured, relaxed performance of the new President. They will also have been struck by the manner in which the day's proceedings - at President McAleese's request - caught the spirit of the age with its informal style and its youthful joie de vivre. Another striking feature of the inauguration was the easy self-confidence of the new President. She is well placed to represent a nation poised, in her own words, to "embrace a golden age of affluence, self-assurance, tolerance and peace".
If the achievement of her predecessor, Mrs Robinson, lay primarily in her ability to symbolise a more outward-looking, more pluralist Ireland, Mrs McAleese's term in office could come to symbolise Ireland's new-found economic confidence. The new President has already spoken of Ireland being in its stride; her challenge is to represent a less defensive Ireland but one which holds fast to the principles of tolerance, compassion and generosity.
It was to be expected that President McAleese as "the first President from Ulster" would address the division on this island in some detail. In her address, she signalled that her commitment to "build bridges" may, indeed, be something more than a campaign slogan. Mrs McAleese moved beyond the usual platitudes about peace and reconciliation; instead she very consciously reached out to those who suspect her bona fides and acknowledged that her talk of reconciliation would raise a "nervous query in the hearts of some North of the border".
There were other sensitive and well-judged statements to underline the inclusive mood of the new Presidency: the acknowledgement that her inauguration was taking place on Armistice Day; the reference to the "unbearable sorrow" of events in Enniskillen a decade ago and the recognition that no side has a monopoly on pain; that "each has suffered intensely".
In her first day in office, President McAleese has, again, demonstrated an ability to confound and surprise those who might be anxious to fit her neatly into one strand of opinion on this island. She has shown that she has the sensitivity and judgment to be a President of all the people, to embody the very diverse spirit of the nation.
The challenge now is in the doing. In her address, President McAleese cited the words of the late Cearbhall O Dalaigh, who advised that while Presidents don't have policies their terms in office can have a theme. President McAleese faces the challenge of building on and giving practical expression to some of the key themes she touched on yesterday, principally peace and reconciliation.
The omens for her Presidency are good. She comes to office on a high tide of popular support and when the prize of peace seems tantalisingly close. It is, of course, much too early to say whether the election of Prof Mary McAleese as President will make a difference. But she has certainly made an impressive start.