<\/p>\n
One day the next week after school, they were again in their favorite booth at Family Ties Restaurant. The waitress brought them their sodas and stuffed potato skins.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur Class Advisor said we\u2019d have free time between our group tour of the Smithsonian Institute\u2019s Space Museum and dinner at the Watergate Hotel before the play \u201cHair Spray\u201d at the Kennedy Center to visit whatever we\u2019d choose,\u201d Edie said. \u201cAny suggestions?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019d like to see the Yoshino cherry trees that Japan gave the United States,\u201d said Joe, the aspiring Forrester. \u201cThey\u2019re dying out, but, they used cuttings from the original trees to start saplings.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve read that the organ in the cathedral is really awesome,\u201d said Ken, the musician. \u201cI doubt they\u2019d let me play it, but maybe we\u2019ll hit a concert or something.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI wouldn\u2019t mind visiting the National Cathedral,\u201d Grace said. \u201cHelen Keller\u2019s sarcophagus is there.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI wonder if I could get my hands on a gargoyle?\u201d said Edie, the aspiring artist. \u201cI guess it\u2019s the cathedral., Maybe, if we take a taxi, we could drive passed the cherry trees on our way to the Kennedy Center.\u201d<\/p>\n
The day hadn\u2019t even dawned yet when the four friends with their classmates and advisors boarded the Greyhound Bus waiting for them in the school parking lot. Most of the students went right back to sleep and awoke hours later to see the tall buildings of our nations\u2019 capitol, Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n
After the group tour of the Smithsonian Institute\u2019s Space Museum, the four teens and Crackers stood at the curb and tried to hail a taxi. No one would stop for them.<\/p>\n
\u201cAren\u2019t you just supposed to raise your arm?\u201d Joe asked<\/p>\n
\u201cWell, that\u2019s what I thought,\u201d Ken said.<\/p>\n
\u201cLet a lady try,\u201d Edie said with a twinkle in her eye. A taxi stopped right away.<\/p>\n
The driver took one look at Crackers and repeatedly said in broken English, \u201cNo dog! No dog!\u201d He drove off, leaving the astonished teens wondering what that was all about.<\/p>\n
A Smithsonian\u2019s Security guard, who had witnessed the fiasco, jotted down the taxi\u2019s license plate and told them that what the taxi driver had done was illegal.<\/p>\n
The guard watched them hail another taxi. The driver saw the guard watching and begrudgingly let Ken in the front seat so the other three could sit in the back with Crackers on the floor.<\/p>\n
The driver dropped them off at Massachusetts and Wisconsin Avenues; right in front of The Cathedral Church of St. Peter and St. Paul.<\/p>\n
Joe paid the fare that was shown on the meter, but, as he walked away, the taxi driver yelled at him, \u201cDon\u2019t you country bumpkins know you\u2019re supposed to gimme a big tip?\u201d\u00a0 Joe hurried his step toward the group.<\/p>\n
They stood at the back of the large tour group. The tour guide was excellent. Her voice projected to everyone in precise diction and grammar as she described each feature of the large organ that loomed in front of them.<\/p>\n
“Do you want to feel it?” an unfamiliar man’s voice whispered into Grace\u2019s right ear.<\/p>\n
Adrenalin, like hot lava, crashed around in Grace\u2019s body. She reached for Cracker\u2019s harness preparing to bolt to the left to get away from the creep.<\/p>\n
\u201cGrace,\u201d Edie\u2019s familiar voice said, \u201clet\u2019s go with this docent, instead of staying with the big group.\u201d<\/p>\n
Grace relaxed with relief and almost laughed out loud at her own foolishness. The new docent meant the pipe organ.<\/p>\n
\u201cWon\u2019t I get into trouble, if I start touching things in a museum like this?\u201d\u00a0 Grace asked, picking up Cracker\u2019s harness again.<\/p>\n
\u201cNo, Miss,\u201d the docent said. \u201cYou and your guide dog are special guests and we have many things for you to experience by touching. Please, come this way to the elevator.\u201d<\/p>\n
As Grace stood in a display and eagerly explored the nooks and crannies of the sandstone models used to make the gargoyles and grotesques that adorn the top of the massive seven story stone cathedral, the docent passed around pieces of the statues to Edie, Joe, and Ken.<\/p>\n
\u201cCan you find the drain pipe that distinguishes the gargoyle from the grotesque?\u201d Edie asked Grace, wishing she could get in the display, too.<\/p>\n
In another part of the cathedral, Grace looped Crackers\u2019 long leash over her arm as she stood on a chair to stretch up to feel the intricately carved wooden panels behind an altar.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe wood is so beautifully grained,\u201d Joe said, wishing he could run his hands over the panels, too.<\/p>\n
The docent told Grace to go passed the fencing to stroke the Canterbury Pulpit from which so many famous speeches and sermons had been given.<\/p>\n
When Grace got down on all fours to feel a tapestry runner, Crackers put her forelegs on the floor with her but in the air, furiously wagging her tail and licked Grace\u2019s face. Crackers thought it was finally time to play!<\/p>\n
They all had a good laugh at that.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, Crackers,\u201d Grace said. \u201cYou silly puppy. It\u2019s hard to be good for so long, isn\u2019t it?\u201d<\/p>\n
She gave Crackers a hug. Then, they all rode the elevator down into the lower catacombs.<\/p>\n
Grace gingerly traced the edge of Helen Keller’s sarcophagus.<\/p>\n
\u201cLook,\u201d Grace said, \u201cthis braille plaque commemorates her life and work.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing so far down in the bowels of this place,\u201d Joe said, \u201cmakes me nervous.\u201d<\/p>\n
Crackers was nervous, too. She was subdued and tried to get Grace to go toward every exit she found.<\/p>\n
The docent took them up to the loft where the organist would sit with a small choir.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is awesome,\u201d Ken said. \u201cThe ranks of keyboards are fantastic. There are so many pipes.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s just enough time to get down to the main floor for a performance by a Boys\u2019 Choir from North Carolina. Shall we go?\u201d<\/p>\n
Of course, Ken wanted to stay, but came along with the others.<\/p>\n
During one of the organ\u2019s crescendos Edie said in a loud whisper, \u201cI sure hope those big stones in the arches don\u2019t vibrate loose or any of the flying buttresses take off.\u201d<\/p>\n
Out in front of the cathedral, it took them four tries to get a taxi to take them to the Jefferson\u00a0 Memorial.<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, Grace,\u201d Edie said as they stood near the Jefferson Memorial. \u201cThe cherry trees are in full bloom. Can you smell them?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYes,\u201d Grace said. \u201cAre they planted in a design?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe cherry trees encircle the Tidal Basin near the Jefferson Memorial,\u201d Ken said to described the scene for Grace. \u201cThey also line the grounds of the Washington Monument.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were given to us by Japan as a token of friendship in 1912,\u201d Joe said. \u201cOther trees have been added over the years to make a truly splendid sight.\u201d<\/p>\n
Their taxi dropped them off in front of the Watergate Hotel.<\/p>\n
\u201cPerfect timing,\u201d Ken said. \u201cOur advisor is just starting to count who\u2019s here and who\u2019s not.\u201d<\/p>\n
After the play at the Kennedy Center, on the bus, Ken whispered to Grace, \u201cI think you have to be blind to get the special tour you had,\u201d Ken said, as he laced his fingers with hers. \u201cYou and Crackers make a very special team.\u201d<\/p>\n
Crackers nudged Ken\u2019s knee, as if to say, Fella, you\u2019re a part of this team, too. Then, she curled up at their feet and slept until the bus was once again in the school\u2019s parking lot.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
#32. Senior Class Trip One day the next week after school, they were again in their favorite booth at Family Ties Restaurant. The waitress brought them their sodas and stuffed potato skins. \u201cOur Class Advisor said we\u2019d have free time between our group tour of the Smithsonian Institute\u2019s Space Museum and dinner at the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1120","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1120","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1120"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1120\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1121,"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1120\/revisions\/1121"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1120"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1120"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/katechamberlin.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1120"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}