We left home on Thursday, August 26th just before 7 a.m. It was a lovely day for traveling. Late in the afternoon we stopped in Woodstock, Virginia, no, not THAT Woodstock! This was about one and a half hours from Washington, D.C., our destination. We had a wonderful dinner at a unique old restaurant, the Spring House Tavern. It was built in 1900. The bar part of the restaurant was originally the home of a lady that shared the spring water with the residents of the town, thus the name Spring House Tavern. Later there were additions that made it the restaurant it is today. Oh, and the food was out of this world – wonderful, delicious, perfect!
Friday morning we took off for Springfield, VA where my late aunt lived. She was just 13 years older and more like a sister and best friend. I hadn’t been back since her funeral 2 ½ years ago. So we drove by her house, visited a couple across the street we had grown to know and love on my many visits there, visited the cemetery, and then headed for the home of friends where we would spend Friday and Saturday nights before heading back to our home on Sunday.
Friday evening our hosts, Steve and Kathy, took us for our first subway ride to a Marriott hotel in downtown D.C. to meet up with Tim Cox, founder of GOOOH, and about 25 other members of GOOOH. We walked to an Italian restaurant for dinner on the patio. In the subway station we rode an escalator that is the second tallest in the world – Russia has the tallest. It was so long and tall, I thought we might just be heading for Heaven!
Saturday morning Steve dropped Charlie and me off about 8 a.m. to meet other GOOOH members and hand out postcard size literature as we walked to the National Mall and the Lincoln Memorial for Glenn Beck’s 8/28 Restoring Honor Rally. (There was no politics or distribution of political material from anyone during the rally. GOOOH is pronounced Go.)
I am so glad we had the opportunity (and strength) to attend this rally. Because we were there, I know that the controversy about what it was going to be and what was going to happen ~ didn’t!
There we were among 500,000 people, shoulder to shoulder, front to back, from the Lincoln Memorial to the Washington Monument (almost one mile), plus some beyond the Monument. Among the people of all walks of life, young, old, infants, teens, young couples and families! They came in all colors, Black, White and in between!
We heard in words and songs the honoring of three wonderful people who represent faith, hope, and charity (the theme of Beck’s T.V. show for this year). But, first, at the beginning was the most powerful prayer I have ever heard and I listened to it again on the computer. If you want to listen to it and/or rally speeches, go to the following link. Under “Transcripts” scroll down to the fourth one that says “Prayer.”
In spite of what some bloggers and gossipers said and still say, the entire event was non-political, inspiring and soul-searching. There was no hateful speech, no rioting, no politics, no inappropriate behavior whatsoever! Dr. Alveda King, (the niece of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. - she lost both her uncle and father in the civil rights movement) spoke. It is unfortunate though that she had been threatened and targeted by hateful speech by those who opposed the rally.
Sarah Palin spoke, not as a politician, but as a soldier’s mom and she introduced three veterans who returned home as wounded heroes from their wars. Their stories were inspiring. Also, three people were introduced and each honored for their lives that were examples of faith, hope, or charity. And, more than $5-million dollars was raised by attendees for the Special Operations Warrior Foundation, an organization that provides college educations for children of fallen soldiers.
The Pledge of Allegiance was led by a Boy Scout, and at one point in the three hour event, a man dressed in Scottish kilts and playing Amazing Grace on the bagpipe, was joined by nearly 500,000 people singing Amazing Grace! It was amazing indeed!
Oh, and I don’t want to forget to mention that no trash was left behind! Everyone picked up their own and put it in garbage bags that went into the trash barrels! There are many ways to show respect!
Besides Glenn Beck, Dr. Alveda King, Sarah Palin, the Boy Scout, singers, and the bagpipe player, the following people were represented on stage: Catholic Priests, Native Americans, Protestant Ministers, Rabbis, and Muslims. They were all there in unity, not necessarily believing with each other on everything, but yet with love and unity.
That is what America has been and can be again. That was the reason for the rally. Hate speech, personal attacks, and gossip from all sides of politics and religion will not work if we want to keep America strong. United we will stand; divided we will fall.
We must always be open to listen to others, even those we may disagree with. Ignorance is NOT bliss.
For peace, liberty and justice for all…(and independent thinking, of course!)
~ Granny La Te Da
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