Today we visited The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. As a Jew, I have been wanting to see the museum for a long time. I knew it would be a "must see" if I ever made it to Washington.
I'm not sure I can put my experience into words, and perhaps it is best that I don't even try. I don't want to minimize my visit into simple cliches. I'll sum up by saying this. The museum and its exhibits moved me to the deepest parts of my soul. As I attempt to find more words to explain, I realize I just can not do it. If you ever have the opportunity to visit the Holocaust Museum, please don't miss it.
I do wish to express some thoughts on human brutality that I processed after leaving the museum. For several centuries, those with darker colored skin were considered to be no better than animals, opening the way for the terrifying slave trade. During WWII, Hitler persuaded Germany that the Jews were equal to dogs, calling for their elimination. And now, in the latter part of the 20th century, continuing through today, the same thing is happening all over again. How can this be? It's called abortion.
Before you get in an uproar and call me every name in the book for comparing slavery and the holocaust to "a women's right to choose", please consider this.
Slave owners had plenty of excuses for their behavior. They had their own motivation for owning slaves and had no use for the facts.
Hitler and his crew had their rationalizations for "the final solution". Certainly, it must have made sense in some convoluted way where the German people were concerned.
Today, we have more than enough proof that abortion is the systematic, premeditated murder of an unborn human being. At the very least, the evidence at hand would give even the most skeptical individual cause for reasonable doubt. However, those who want to close their eyes can find every excuse to do so, deepening their denial.
As we look back at history, we wonder how good people could stand by and allow slavery. It took men of great conviction and courage to finally put an end to it. (Thank you, Mr. Lincoln and the courageous soldiers of the Union army). We are baffled that the death camps could have taken the lives of 6,000,000 people before the truth was exposed and the survivors were liberated.
I'll leave it to you to do the rest of the math. My intent is NOT to minimize the Holocaust. My experience at the museum was very personal and meaningful. But one purpose of the museum is to remind people of the attrocities so that we never let it happen again. Well, it IS happening again. What are YOU doing about it?
Now, on with the day.
After visiting the Holocaust Museum, I was emotionally spent. We had talked about going to another Smithsonian museum, but neither Mary or I had the energy to do it. We decided to walk to Ford's Theatre to see the place where President Lincoln was assassinated.
We got there in time to hear the latter portion of the tour guides description of what took place on that fateful evening. I was amazed to learn that the theater was taken away from the owners after the assassination. Two years later, they secured the theater back from the government and intended to re-open it, but the public was outraged that they would even attempt to do so. They decided to sell the theater back to the government. Since the government didn't have any use for a theater, they completely gutted the interior and turned it into an office building! Some years later, the third floor collapsed killing more than twenty government employees. It was after this that someone came up with the brilliant idea to restore the theater to its classic design out of respect for Lincoln. Today, the theater is a historical landmark AND a working theater, currently presenting The Grapes of Wrath.
After resting in our hotel room for a couple hours, the kids dressed up in their Halloween costumes. I called around and found a church that was having a safe alternative for the kids, with plenty of games and candy for all. Jenna was dressed as a beautiful princess and Zach was dressed as Anakin Skywalker, complete with light saber and a hair braid. They both looked very cool. The kids had a great time.
Afterwards, we were all hungry for something to eat. We drove around D.C. and Arlington, Virginia looking for some grub. We finally parked the car at the hotel and walked next door to the Holiday Inn. They had a restaurant on the 17th floor, which provided a spectacular view of the the city lights. We enjoyed a good meal and came back to the room to call it a night.
Tomorrow we leave D.C. and make our way to Lynchburg, Virginia. We plan on making some stops along the way. Stay tuned...
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