Monuments, Temples, & a Little Bit of Baseball

Last Wednesday, when we went to go see the monuments, was so hot! It was really humid!! Anyways, just wanted to get that out of the way. I felt a little funny standing in the Lincoln Memorial considering that the last time that I had seen that monument in daylight was about six years ago. I really loved the Lincoln Memorial but with the Vietnam Memorial I was left a bit. . . disillusioned. It was very nice but I felt that the memorial shines even better at night. In the morning it looks so straightforward and formal. But at night, there's something so somber and I guess you can say almost majestic about the memorial. Granted, there was nothing majestic about that war. It's just that the black walls with the engraved names shine so beautifully at night with lights pointed at them. The names are accentuated and that's when you truly realize the vast amounts of people that perished in the war. Whereas in the morning, the light creates a glare in the wall that hides some of the names.

Going back to our class discussions on Friday, Prof. Jackson asked a question regarding the Lincoln Memorial that I came up with an answer for after class. We were talking about how the memorial created an identity of a sacred temple. Prof. Jackson then went to ask if there were any details that helped enforce that identity. I couldn't think of anything at that moment but it was later in the afternoon (in my Interpreting Literature class to be more precise) that I realized that there were two things that immediately struck me that helped re-inforce that idea of a temple and treating it as an almost sacred place. One, the signs placed at the entrance that asks visitors to be quiet and respectful while in the memorial. When I first saw this sign, I asked myself, why? Why have this sign placed here yet you don't see this sign placed on the WWII memorial? Shouldn't the WWII memorial also request for peace and quiet? Also, the Lincoln Memorial is one of the only memorials that I've seen that has security guards on duty 24/7. Why? Yet it's these two details that allow for the Lincoln Memorial to hold an essence of a sacred temple. It is because of them that tourists who enter whisper to each other and control their kids from running around all over the memorial; therefore, creating the mood that this place is one that should be treated in a sacred way.

I can't help but to also reflect on the Braves vs. Nationals game. I know that the Braves aren't the most amazing team, but man did they suck on Friday. I mean, sure they won the game and yes, maybe they weren't playing against the most amazing team, but still! They had so many foul balls and some players who couldn't hit the ball. I was very disappointed in them. They played a better game earlier this spring during their training. Maybe it just wasn't their day. I still had fun though, complete with good friends, fireworks, and getting criticized by the people behind me for cheering on the Braves and not the Nats. To them I say, it's a free country!