Black Wings In The Cold

SFcam: 2012: Part Sixteen
(May 7, 2012)

It would be the much less exciting and uneventful day that my class would visit a few memorials. After walking the streets of DC, dazing and confused, I finally accepted my dizziness as mere sleep deprivation and not some form of blacking out. Since half of it was in my head, the thought gave me a small morsel of comfort and I was able to make it to the hotel without anything dangerous happening.

 

The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial was less impressive in its size than others that circled the capital, but it presented a humble reflection of what the country had endured during the Great Depression. At this point in the trip, I was still shaken from my experience of the day before and I cautiously scoured the structures, keeping in mind any benches that I would need in the future. 

Interesting enough, the walk between memorials offered its own little glimpse into the architecture of the city. From the other side of the river, we could make out several notable monuments and one very odd helicopter fly-by. Many of us speculated as to what the specifics were of those aircraft, but it was agreed upon that the president resided in one of those helicopters. It was common knowledge that when he traveled, several other decoys were also put in place so as to leave anyone attempting an assassination to second guess.

The newly resurrected Martin Luther King Jr. Monument was a pleasant surprise in a landscape dotted with centuries old buildings. Its was clear cut and white, a great stone severed clean in half with the figure of the King embedded in one side.

The final monument leaves no room for words. Every nook and cranny stood as a symbolic gesture of the days spent in World War II. Each slab carved with the names of America's states and territories, each star a veteran who committed their life to the cause. And the birds were pretty cool, I guess.