Arkansas Group Bound for the Inauguration with a Stop in NYC

I'm not writing with a snow-covered quill, but I am typing with frostbitten fingertips after three days of touring in some of the coldest weather New York has felt in years.  This weekend I worked with high school students from Arkansas who were on the east coast for a New York-DC trip focused on the Inauguration.  (They were able to get tickets for all of them through their senator as well as one from Utah who happened to have a few extra.)

This group was also lucky enough to get Ellis, a very experienced driver from Richmond, who not only knew how to navigate the blocked roads and detours of Washington this week, but who was also the official bus driver for Barack Obama whenever he campaigned in Virginia.  A picture of Ellis and our new president hung proudly from his rear view mirror.

 

Everyone seemed to be excited about this trip and they appreciated the history that they were going to witness firsthand.  Several were journaling about the trip and this provided my favorite line one morning on the way to breakfast.  I was talking to seventeen-year-old Kayla (the age is very important to keep in mind) that by journaling they would be able to remember and process a lot more of the trip. 

Robert:  It's a really historic moment in our country's history and you'll be able to say you were there.

Kayla:  Definitely.  I'm journaling so that when I'm thirty I can sit down and show my grandkids.

Besides thirty-year-old grandmothers, this group also included a 6'5" football player with size 18 shoes.  Here's a picture of one of my shoes (size 11) next to one of his:

 

And here's a shot of his size 18 boot unable to fit in the large stirrup of his carousel horse.

 

 

 

Comments

[Jennifer]

I remember when I used to think 30 was ancient, lol. Now I'm not too far away from that age... What an awesome experience for those kids though!! I, obviously, didn't get to take my kids, but I let my 7th graders watch the inauguration on tv. They're part of my lunch group, so we ate lunch in my classroom and then watched it for the rest of the period. It was a teacher's dream. All those things I've been telling them about...they got to see it live yesterday. The oath, the speech, the commentary afterwards - everything. It was definitely one of those "teachable moments."