By Marni Bates

Throughout our journey, organizations have brought up one event time and time again in our meetings – the Holocaust. I’ve rolled my eyes inwardly as groups I disagree with seem to desperately grasp at it in order to connect with our emotions. As I walked into the National Holocaust Museum in Washington DC, I tried to mentally prepare myself for what I knew I was about to encounter. Nothing could have made me feel alright as I stood horrified at pictures of starvation, slavery, sickness and treatment so horrendous that there were simply no words to describe it. I found myself crying and whispering “don’t do it, no!” as the photos became increasingly disturbing. It dawned on me that our trip is all about that – finding a cause, an injustice for which we can stand up and say “don’t do it!” The museum reminded me that genocide is far from over and it is time to take a stand.

Our next stop was at the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum where we got a bite to eat before splitting up to check out the various exhibits. Stephanie and I went to see the American History exhibit with everything from Dorothy’s ruby red slippers, R2D2 & C3PO to Ben Franklin’s pipe and Carrie Bradshaw’s laptop. I think it was everyone’s favorite part of the museum because we could all connect with something there.

I was excited to discover that our next destination would be Arlington Cemetery and it completely lived up to my expectations. The tombstones were in stunning long white lines and they seemed to give a small glow off the grass. I talked with Emily and Jillian about what we imagine happens after death and the complexities of being alive. They gave me lots to think about as we reached the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and silently watched the changing of the guards.

The rain started to drizzle down but luckily it remained light as we went to see the graves of the Kennedys. Robert Kennedy’s was incredibly simple, marked only by a plain white cross. John F. Kennedy’s was completely different. Since Texas, where we talked about his assassination with conspiracy theorists and saw where the shooting took place, JFK has been constantly referenced. It was amazing seeing his grave next to Jackie O’s and to read the wise remarks he made etched in stone.

We boarded the bus and went off to dinner. After dinner, we went to an amazing theater where we watched Harry Potter on one of the largest screens I have ever seen. I thought the movie was great.

We were lucky again with the weather, which had stopped raining during Harry Potter. After the movie we went down to the National Mall and saw the memorials lit up at night. They were absolutely stunning. Everyone had their personal favorite but as we admired the World War II, Korean War and Vietnam War Memorials we shared family stories and really thought about the price of freedom and the toll that war takes. It was amazing looking up at a larger than life Abraham Lincoln and realizing that while we are from all over the United States and will soon be leaving each other and this trip behind us, we all do hope that government of the people, for the people and by the people will never perish.