3/7/2005
Hanging Out
This was what you might call a lazy day here in the nations capitol. It wasn't cold, but it wasn't exactly Hawaii, either. Like most of us here, where the nexus of democracy and the Bush administration somehow manage to co-exist, I didn't really know what to do with myself.
I did spend a little time on the Mall, where I shot the picture above. In the process of ambling through my favorite Smithsonian haunts, I was surprised and pleased to see my favorite painting, on exhibit at the National Gallery: the Rembrandt self-portrait as the apostle Paul. This is a deeply psychological painting, one that I could spend days talking about, but not my point in this short post. I mention it only because this painting is a reminder to me that this small bit of land represents not just here and now, but all of western civilization.
The point is that the Washington Mall is the people's terrain. You and I own the space between the Capitol Building and the Lincoln Memorial. As far as hallowed ground goes, this is way up there.
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