After the Dust of Centuries

"I look forward to an America which will not be afraid of grace and beauty." - John Fitzgerald Kennedy

For Christmas my sister gave us tickets to Irving Berlin's White Christmas at the Kennedy Center in DC. It's been years since I've been to the Kennedy Center, and having the opportunity to catch a performance in the Opera House could not have been a more perfect Christmas gift.

Once, a long time ago, when I asked my sister where the Kennedy Center was, she said to me, "You know, it's the big, square, white building with the flag on top" - to which I replied that she had just described every building in Washington, DC. I've since come to realize that the Kennedy Center is, indeed, one of the most spectacular buildings in the capital city and a world-class arts center, and I was especially excited to see a performance there with Maggie and show her around the legendary arts complex.

The Kennedy Center is enormous and full of wonderful historic art and memorabilia. Before the show we wandered through its vast carpeted halls and eventually strolled out onto the River Terrace overlooking the Potomac River; across the water was the shimmering glitter of Georgetown reflected in the water. It was a cold and windy evening, but the twinkling trees on the terrace and the sparkling lights in the water made us forget the chill as we breathed in the Christmas spirit in the air.

I caught this shot of my nephew, Jack, reading the words of John F. Kennedy on the wall, pearls of wisdom imparted by the late president who was an avid advocate of the arts and a staunch believer in their power to change society for the good. Given the current state of our society, the rampant infighting in the government and the wars overseas that have gone on for more than a decade, I want to believe that these words from a bygone president spoke in some small way to Jack, giving him hope that the arts may, in fact, have the unrivaled potential to create change in an overly jaded society.

My six-foot nephew suddenly became very small against the words on the wall, words inscribed as a tribute to a president who, at the time he spoke them, had no idea of the legacy he was leaving behind. Part of that legacy touched us tonight.

"I am certain that after the dust of centuries has passed over our cities, we, too, will be remembered not for victories or defeats in battle or in politics, but for our contribution to the human spirit." -- John Fitzgerald Kennedy, on behalf of the National Cultural Center which would come to bear his name, November 29, 1962