This past weekend I was able to take advantage of the warm, sunny D.C. weather and head over to Arlington Cemetery. The last time I had been to the cemetery was when I was in eighth grade for a class trip. I remembered a great deal from my first visit, but it was interesting what struck me now, visiting as an (almost) adult.
Walking among the resting places of America's fallen heros, some well known and some unknown, I felt a deep sense of patriotism and pride in our country. Watching the changing of the guard I was much better able to understand the solemn beauty of the tradition in which we honor those who sacrificed their lives for our country than I was as a fourteen year old. A group of giggling middle school students reminded me of the first time I visited Arlington and watched the changing of the guard. So much has changed since then, the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan have made our nation more aware of the important sacrifices our service men and women make for us and our freedom each day.
The grave-sites of Arlington chronicle American History. Visiting the resting places of Presidents Taft and Kennedy, numerous Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court, the crew of the Challenger, Pierre Charles L'Enfant (city planner of D.C.) and countless other historical figures was exhilarating for a history buff like myself. Visiting the graves of Robert Kennedy and Ted Kennedy was especially poignant for me. I have always admired the work of all of the Kennedy family- their work for civil rights and social justice. As the race for his former Senate seat was heating up and the reconciliation of the House and Senate Health Care Reform legislation about to begin, it was moving to remember the man who did so much to bring this legislation to Congress.
-Clare
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