On the Road Again: Washington, D.C.

With Memorial Day just behind us, it is appropriate to reflect on our recent trip by The Horizon Center, Shelby Senior Services, to Washington, D. C.

What brings you to tears? What speaks to your patriotism? What thrills you to the core and causes you to swell with pride?

For me, it was seeing the WWII and Vietnam Memorials again that always brings me to tears. Along with our recent visit to Omaha Beach in France, a visitor gets a real sense of the losses sustained in these war operations. Families and friends leave notes, memorabilia, flags, clothing items, pictures, and more at the base of the stone in which their loved one's name is engraved. These are collected by the park personnel each day and each item is catalogued and stored until the new Vietnam museum is built. Samples of these thousands of items will eventually be displayed. We were blessed by receiving a flag once displayed there, thanks to Renee Buening's inquiry at the local information booth.

Arlington National Cemetery causes me to want to be more patriotic. Who can see the ceremony of the changing of the guard without acknowledging that without these unknown men and women answering the call to military service, we might have had hostile forces taking over our country! The Guards performing the ceremony live by strict rules of conduct for the rest of their lives, and they are happy to do that. Spit-shined and immaculately attired, the Guards change every 30 minutes to great pomp and circumstance. Through rain and snow and hurricanes and freezing cold, these Guards are honored to pay homage to the unknown soldiers who died for our freedom. How can I not feel more patriotic after seeing this?

I had to think a little bit about what thrills me to the core and causes me to swell with pride. As our group fanned out at the National Mall, some of us headed for the American History Museum, one of ten buildings designated as the Smithsonian Institute. I have been to all the buildings, so I was ready to relax after re-visiting this one. What I saw was thrilling. Tour bus after tour bus unloaded people of all ages. You might expect that more mature people would be interested in our history, but here came school groups, parents with children and grandparents, college-age people, and groups of mature individuals just like ours, as well as parents with little children in strollers! They chose to come here, not the theme parks or places with rides, etc. Thousands of people, trekking from building to building taking in art, science, aerospace, gemstones, geology, and much more! How can one not be thrilled and full of pride to see Americans wanting to know more about their country?

We had one minor glitch, however. A few of our group decided to visit the Holocaust Museum. They were caught up in a lock-down situation for a while, but I didn't have to bail out anyone. They will be writing a book about the experience, they joked.

Capping the experience was the nighttime drive through the D.C area with the White House, Capitol Building, and Memorials all lit up. What a beautiful end to this trip to our nation's capital.

Come and travel with us. Travel Show is July 20, 2017, 6:30 pm, The Horizon Center. Call for free reservation as seating is very limited: 317-398-0127 or call me for more information at 317-701-5984.