It’s the last
day in June and time for a long overdue post. pp I flew to Carlisle, PA for the
First Resident Course for the Army War College.
A long year of reading, writing, collaborating, and forums paid off in
two weeks of lectures, seminars, “field trips”, and side trips. While I am impressed with their prestige the
two weeks at the War College did not produce the volumes of work that the distance portion did. 
The best part was having Lisa, Grant, and Sam drive up from NC to PA to spend a
very quick weekend with me. We met in
Sharpsburg, MD – also known as Antietam Battlefield – where the single
bloodiest day of the Civil War was fought in September 1862. Since I had finished the tour of the Corn
Field, Dunker Church, Sunken Road and Bloody Lane, and Burnside Bridge only an
hour before with my class when Lisa arrived we did the tour again.
It’s hard to explain “hallowed ground” to a 6
year old. But I showed Grant the famous
Matthew Brady photo of Confederate dead by Dunker Church – the photo stand
strategically placed for effect. Grant
stood in front of the photo stand with the church in the distance and quickly
calculated that the men in the picture fell where he was standing. I think Grant understood that the place was
important without knowing why.
For the record, TJ was at Camp for the month and couldn't come. I missed him - and I know he would have loved the city too - but sometimes we can't do everything all the time.
The next day was a MWR trip to New York
City. The first stop, the 9/11 Memorial,
another infamous September day and another discussion about hallowed ground.
This time more real, more recent for those of us who lived that day and its
aftermath. The city was crowded and hot,
especially the subway, but we eventually found our way to the Museum of Natural
History. 
The museum is vivid in my childhood memory. Walking into the hall of African Mammals and
the Oceanarium reminded me of field trips in grade school. Watching the usually hard-to-impress Grant
run in awe from one exhibit to another gave me a special tingle. Our day finished off with a cocktail at the
very foot of the Prometheus statue in Rockefeller Center. 
Our Sunday was
spent in Carlisle, a charming little town with historical relevance during both
the Revolutionary and Civil War periods.
Lisa played with compositions with her camera while Grant did his best
to remind us that he is a contentious child.
Sometimes that kid’s best moments are when he is sleeping.
And just like that it was over. Lisa was
on the road, Sam was picked up by her mom, and I finished classes and marked
the half way point for my degree.
This
has been an interesting six months – two trips to the US, neither time to home
– and both times my family came to me.
