Washington, DC
After a fun wedding and mini-family reunion in Virginia, we embark on part 2 of our cross country adventure. This is what I am referring to as the Northern Tier return. The actual ‘return’ part of the trip may be a few weeks away since we have a 5-day bike ride in Pittsburgh on the Great Allegheny Passage planned and also a ‘taste of New England’ trip planned before we actually start heading back West.
We stop in at ‘Little” Washington, Virginia. A cute ’boutique’ small town that Josiah stumbled onto on his way to the wedding. It was platted by a young George Washington. Our friends tell us later it is well known for its Michelin starred restaurant, cute shops and scenery. We purchase delicious fresh croissants and bread.
We make a short trip to Harper’s Ferry, now a national historic Park that commemorates John Brown’s 1859 anti-slavery revolt that was put down by then Federal general Robert E. Lee. It is also known as the furthest northern town held by the Confederacy after 12,000 the union soldiers surrendered to Gen Stonewall Jackson. It is on the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers and is on the Chesapeake and Ohio River (C&O) Canal that is now a popular bike trail that my brother-in-law David is going to bike before he joins us for the Pittsburgh trip.
There are a few dichotomies in these places. It is known for the birthplace of Storer college, one of the many Black colleges formed after the civil war to educate formerly enslaved persons. It is also the site of 1931 (!) Confederate monument to perpetuate the ‘good and faithful slave’ narrative – that Storer graduates protested.
After a full day of driving, we arrive in Washington DC to catch up with our college friends. We have been blessed to have good friends after so many years of no real contact, that still talk to us, invite us to their homes, and are still pretty amazing.
Our friend in DC is an old hasher (food service) co-worker from my Freshman year. She is native of DC and one of those life long learners that is continually finding out what is the next big thing to be involved in. She has volunteered with the African American Museum for many years and she helps secure tickets for the next day. It has been several years since we have visited the museum and we still feel like we just touched the surface after a full day inside on a perfectly rainy day outside. Our recent civil rights trail is extremely relevant to the museum experience. Our friend shows us the hidden gems (like the reflection garden with the indoor waterfall !) that we would have missed on our own. We catch up on her latest ventures into library sciences, while she helps provide support to our ideas of how to be “of purpose” and still be part-time.
We head to her local book store and hear author Judith Viorst (famous for ‘Alexander and the terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad day’) give advice, as an active 94 year-old, on how to live life to the fullest. May we be as with it even in our 70’s. We come back and play games until midnight with one of her adult sons and his girlfriend. We feel proud that we were approved to meet the girlfriend – who is amazing – after just one evening. It may also be that we were just warm bodies for game night.
The next evening we head out to Virginia and visit one of Siri’s freshman dorm friends who has been a federal civil rights attorney for decades. We relax in their garden oasis as the years apart again fade away and we update each other on family and mutual friends. We also see brainstorm on how we can be ‘of service’ to help defend democracy and the rule of law.
As we leave, I think back to some of the advice from Judith Viorst. She asks us to challenge the constraints that we put on ourselves, such as we are too old for that, that we can’t make a difference, that we shouldn’t be speaking out. This trip reminds us that there are amazing people out there that are doing more, are passionate about the work they do and have found an ongoing purpose. It gives us ideas on how we can choose to do more in our own lives.
And since you asked (?) here were some more words of wisdom from Ms. Viorst.
- Always be willing to learn something new
- Make appropriate apologies – ask for forgiveness
- Life is too short for being hurt
- Foster gratitude
- It is OK to ask for for help
- Help save the world – at any age, you can still make a difference, – find something to do, however small.
Siri and David Adventures 