Visiting Arlington National Cemetery

On a hill across the Potomac sits a mansion overlooking the capitol city. Around that mansion is the Arlington National Cemetery.

One of the things that impressed me the first time I visited the cemetery in high school was the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknowns. The guards, more accurately called sentinels, made a big impression with their discipline and precision. A rubber mat cushions their path as they execute their duty. Those sentinels that "walk the mat" have one of the most prestigious duties in our military.

The changing of the guard is a very solemn ceremony performed with a minimum of speaking and great deal of precision. The routine is repeated so often and so accurately that wear patterns mark each footstep in the mat and you can trace the movements of the change in the stone tiles. Click the link to read more about the symbolism.

On a side note, one of my team members at work served this duty.

Linda and I wandered the rows, reading several of the inscriptions. Many served in our military but there are also memorials for those lost on the space shuttles, war time correspondents, and 3,800 former slaves. Of course, the graves of President John F. Kennedy, Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, and Senator Robert F. Kennedy are also found here.

It's quite a place to stop and consider the sacrifices that have been made in the interests of our nation and the ideals that we champion.