2.26.2008

Arlington National Cemetery


Erica and I visited Arlington on Sunday. We've both been to the more popular spots in the cemetery and this time we wanted to find a few out of the way things. First, we headed to Section 60, where those killed in Afghanistan and Iraq are buried. It was really moving to see the recent graves. So much of the cemetery seems far-removed and historical, but this area really brought things into perspective. There were lots of flowers and a few families visiting. You almost felt like an intruder spying like a voyeur while families came to actually mourn. There were burials as recent as Feb 19th, when we were there Sunday.

Section 60

While in Section 60, we also noticed the Mormon insignia on a headstone. I never realized how many different crosses could be on headstones. We saw crescent moons for Muslims, five or six different crosses, the Star of David, and this Angel Moroni.


After walking the equivalent of a few blocks, we found the 9/11 Pentagon memorial. Talk about unreal...that day seems so long ago now, but these headstones brought it all back. From the memorial, you can see where the plane hit the Pentagon. It's kind of down in a corner of the cemetery and very peaceful.

9/11 Memorial with Pentagon in the background

We had a great time with Erica finding new places we hadn't visited or parts of places we hadn't been to. And for a cheery note to wind up this kind of sad post, an adorable picture of Hayden and I at the Iwo Jima Memorial.

4 comments:

  1. Yeah, that was really neat to see those parts of Arlington. And, that's such a great pic of you and Hayden!

    Thanks again for the fun week!

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  2. Are you guys planning on moving, because you sure are seeing a lot of sites? I'm jelious!! It's bitter cold out there, girl.

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  3. Anonymous8:30 PM

    That is so cool. We didnt get to see that memorial before we left. We did get to go to the cemetary. Very awesome experience. You dont really realize what people have done for us until you see those rows and rows of headstones.

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  4. this was a touching post. thanks mel

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