I had never intended on making the trip to D.C.  I didn’t have the means.  I don’t have a job.  I don’t have any savings.  How could I?  Only within the previous two weeks before D.C. had I gone to the Tea Party Express in San Antonio, then the Stand up for Texas Rally in Austin.  Being an amateur photographer, I thought it would have been a very good opportunity for me to continue to document history.  But I did not have the means.           

            Last Thursday while looking over the posts on Facebook, one of my colleagues whom I had met at the Pelosi Protest in Houston had made a posting about the UN and their push to intervene in parental rights in the USA.  I made a comment on that posting, and we began communicating through that posting.  Eventually, I had emailed her my phone number so that we could discuss the issue in further detail.  So we connected by phone, and as we got to talking, she told me that she had a room booked already in D.C. but was traveling alone.  Now, since the announcement of the D.C. march months ago, my wife had been pushing me to go.  My response to her was always the same – we can’t afford it.  But I told my wife about the offer of a room, and yes, I did tell her that it was a woman who made the offer.  Honestly, my wife did not seem to have an issue with it.  She had been pushing for me to go because she knows how passionate I am about this movement.  So, after asking “is it okay” time and time again, I began looking into the possibility of flying to D.C.

            As I mentioned, I didn’t want to spend any money flying.  I did find some inexpensive flights, some around $300.  But that’s $300 that we could use for bills around the house.  Then, my wife reminded me of the frequent flyer miles she has.  She’s traveled more than I, so she told me I could use her miles.  So I called the airlines and asked how many miles I would need to get to D.C.  SCORE!  She had enough; I had a room where I could stay, so I was set.

            I booked my flight on Tuesday, September 8, and flew out on Thursday.  Immediately upon getting into D.C. and meeting up with my colleague, the fun began.  She had wanted to go the Library of Congress, so since the day was still early, we decided to go.  D.C. is easy to get around on foot, so we walked.  While walking down 1^st Street, we happened upon a couple walking towards us.  I knew there’d be other Tea Partiers in town; I didn’t expect to run into some so quickly.  I’ve never had a problem with walking up to strangers to speak with them, and over years as we have taken vacations, this attribute has turned into a true asset.  I approached the couple and asked them if they were in town for the Tea Party.  Later I would find out that D.C. is not conservative or Republican friendly, but at the time, I had no idea.  Luckily, they were on the right side of politics.  They were a mother and son, and they had just come from one of the rallies held that day.  We found out that FreedomWorks, the main organizing group for the Tea Party, had begun holding functions, including seminars that Thursday.  They had directed us to the Hyatt hotel a few blocks away.

             We headed to the Hyatt.  Spotting other Tea Party members was easy.  Red, white, and blue scarves, USA hats, t-shirts with pro-American slogans on them.  Yep.  We were in the right place.  We found a table of volunteers and got some information on the events for the next couple of days.  My colleague had already signed up for a parental rights seminar on Friday, but there were more events scheduled.  Activism, recruiting, fund raising.  There were plenty of events that FreedomWorks and its partner organizations had scheduled.  One event that was taking place later that day was a physicians’ protest against healthcare reform.

            We headed to the Capitol where the protest had been scheduled to be held.  It was scheduled for 4:30 that afternoon, so we had some time to go to the Library of Congress.  On display in the Jefferson Building were some early drafts of the Constitution and an original copy of Thomas Payne’s Common Sense.  Unfortunately, the exhibit hall closes at 4:30 but in the time we were there, I was able to see these treasures.  While there in the Library, we met a woman from California.  Bonnie.  I had noticed her because she was staring at my shirt.  When we had gone to the Hyatt, the volunteers had given us some stickers, about 3 inches in diameter, which read “Tea Party Society”.  I had put one on my shirt, and that’s at what she was staring.  My colleague, Jennifer, had wanted to do some research at the Library, but she found out everyone who wants to do so have to register to enter the Library in a different building.  Bonnie wanted to do the same, so she began to walk with us, which is when we had formal introductions.

            Both of them registered with the Library, after which we headed to the physicians’ protest.  We approached the northeast corner of the Capitol, all three of us, and saw a sea of white coats and scrubs.  There must have been several hundred physicians and nurses, and their supporters, gathered there.  They were not afraid to express themselves.  Some were holding signs, some mass produced and some homemade.  I spoke with one nurse from Massachusetts who held a sign stating that nurses do not support healthcare reform.  She was obviously upset, and he had no problem expressing herself.  Walking around the crowd, I could easily see others who held the same views.  Concerned about the impact of the current healthcare bill in the House, they wanted to speak out.  One attendee had a bullseye on the back of his coat.  The speakers discussed the impact more regulation would have on healthcare.  Physicians are already tired of government intervention.  The speakers brought up all of the burdensome regulations the healthcare industry faces.  When tort reform was brought up as a necessity in any healthcare legislation, a loud cheer went up from the crowd.  Liability insurance is ridiculous.  I personally know a physician whose liability insurance increased from $150,000 a year to $300,000 a year.  That’s in addition to his payroll and overhead.  Several physicians with whom I had spoken told me that after the AMA, the American Medical Association, backed the president’s plan, many doctors dropped their memberships.

            Friday morning, we slept in.  We were both tired, but there was still plenty to do.  It was 9/11, and though I wanted to go to the Pentagon to remember the victims of terrorist attacks, I didn’t.  The king of lies was there, feigning remembrance for those whose memory he has trampled, not out of respect for those murdered but out of obligation.  I could not be around that because I can’t keep my mouth closed.  Instead, Jennifer had a parental rights seminar that afternoon, which meant I would have a few hours to myself.  I walked her to the hotel where the seminars were held, and then headed down Pennsylvania Avenue to the National Archives.  I did not go to D.C. for sightseeing, but I did want to see the Constitution and Declaration of Independence.  On my way there, I passed by the Department of Justice.  There was a small news conference being held outside, so I stopped to listen.  There were five people speaking about something I didn’t understand at first, but then I remembered.  Earlier that morning, I checked my phone’s internet for some news.  I usually go to hotair.com to begin readings for the day, and then move on from there.  Listed as one of the stories was the shooting of Jim Pouillion, more popularly known as “Jim from Michigan”.  He had been shot outside a Michigan high school.  Jim was a pro-life activist who was well known in his community.  The news conference was to bring awareness to his shooting and to question why neither Attorney General Eric Holder nor Obama had said anything about it.  The speakers compared the lack of mention from either to the quick response from Obama on the shooting of George Tiller, better known as Tiller the Baby Killer since he frequently performed late term abortions.  I know it was 9/11, but why the silence from the White House and the DoJ on this shooting but quick responses when a baby killer had been shot?

            I made it to the National Archives, where I waited in line with many other people.  While waiting, I ran into some fellow Texans.  They had come in from The Woodlands.  We got to speaking about the Tea Party movement and events each of us had attended.  As the line moved, we kept talking.  We made our way into the Rotunda, where the documents are housed.  The room was dim, very dim.  A guard explained that the lights were kept dim to preserve the documents and prevent damage.  The low light meant no flash photography.  I had never used the manual focus function on my camera, and the low lighting made focusing even more difficult.   We waited in line, moving slowly, and then separated into groups.  All the while, I was concentrating on my camera.  I had only gotten up to page 70 in the operation manual, so I was very concerned whether or not my photos would come out.

            The guard began speaking to our group, explaining how people should move through the Rotunda.  He told we did not have to stand in line when allowed in to see the documents but to be mindful of those around us.  Once he let us in, I made my way for the first one I could see.  It was the Declaration of Independence.  The document was huge.  One giant page of defiance.  One giant page of history.  Barely visible was the writing – time, even though under glass for preservation, was taking a toll on the Declaration.  But still visible, standing out as was intended, was the “J” in John Hancock’s signature.  If only King George could see it now, I suspect he’d be as angry now as when he received it.  The Constitution, the Bill of Rights, all in front of me.  I admit I got choked up.  How could I not.  What was before me had been written by men who were learned but who had never founded a nation.  Yet, with no money, with no standing army, they did.

            I went back to the hotel to pick up Jennifer.  We were going to head back to the hotel for a bit of rest, because later that evening the Tea Party Express buses would be arriving in D.C.  They would arrive at a hotel not too far from where we were staying.  Across from the hotel where the seminars were held is a plaza, and something was going on in the plaza.  It had begun drizzling, but I wanted to see what was going on.  We crossed the street to find out what it was.  Some pro-life people were having a memorial for aborted babies.  “3,500” in big white numbers on a red background was laid out in the plaza, held down with children’s and babies shoes.  I asked this lady, Shauna, what they were doing.  She explained to me her group wanted to bring attention to everyone that 3,500 babies a day are aborted.  Think of that number.  Shauna also shared with me her personal story.  I have to say, I was moved.  With my photography, there have been times that I have been tempted to snap a shot of moments that move me, but out of respect for whatever they may have been, I didn’t, nor do I discuss what I had seen.  In this case with Shauna, I have to keep her story to myself.  What she told me is between God and her.  But I prayed for her, and I told her has much.  I told her that God loves her, and she began to cry.