Three Days in D.C.

This Fall brought me new adventures. . . a  three day trip to Washington, D.C. with my sister to visit my niece. I haven't flown since 1989 so this was a very new experience. I've never traveled with my sister. I rode the Metro, took my first taxi since 1994 and rode in a car rented by the hour.

We flew from Tulsa to Dallas and then on to D.C. (a non-eventful trip!) Picked up at the airport by a friend, we arrived at my niece's apartment just before she got home from work.

The next three days were spent laughing, eating, walking and talking. I saw my niece as a grown up and not just as the little girl who used to stay up late watching movies. I acted like a tourist with my niece as my guide to monuments, memorials, the National Cathedral, Arlington Cemetery and more. I wanted to see everything and took pictures everywhere I went, at times taking pictures for others or asking them to take one of all of us.

We ate burgers and fries at Good Stuff Eatery, (I had a Toasted Marshmallow Milkshake), chili dogs and a half-smoke at Ben's Chili Bowl, home cooked fried chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy, and home-made meat loaf (cooking lessons that ended well), a lunch at the Old Post Office food court, and one night we finished the day with dessert at Kramer Books and After Words Café (I had the Dysfunctional Family Brownie. If you knew my family, you'd know how funny that really is.)

Our trip home  (D.C. to Dallas) was a little bumpy as we diverted south to skirt around storms. The clouds looked awesome from above! We landed late in Dallas, but so did everyone else. Delayed an hour, we arrived in Tulsa just fine.

I spent the night at my sister's house. The next morning I woke early, ready for the drive home and I arrived at my house before noon.

The days flew by. I wasn't quite ready to leave the big city excitement for my rural lifestyle so it took me a few days to get back into the things that are my routine, but I finally settled in and got down to business.

I look at the pictures (nearly 200 of them!) and remember the great time I had. I give thanks to my family for their understanding, taking up the slack and making do while I was gone. And most of all, I thank God for the privilege of traveling to our nation's capital. Everyone who can, should go see what our forefather's created for us. Everyone should see the war memorials and the thousands of white headstones at Arlington that stand as reminders of the men who gave their lives. 

The names on the Wall brought tears to my eyes at the sacrifice of so many in Viet Nam. A lump formed in my throat as I watched the precision of the Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown. So many lives given; so much sacrifice.

Yes, it was good to go and see.  It was good to spend time with my wonderful sister. It was good to know my niece as an adult. All in all, a great three days in D.C.