Fixing my mistakes

I have made the same mistake twice but it’s not too late to go back and fix either error.

I’m talking about how I’ve grown up for the past 21 years in Washington, DC, our nation’s capital, one of the most visited tourist destinations in the country; a location that tells the story of the birthplace of our nation, where some of our best and worst leaders have walked the streets. I have lived there but I have not lived there. I’d be ashamed to try to name the number of times that I’ve gone into DC just to be a tourist, to just look around, go see Lincoln, pretend that I’m a super secret spy at the Spy Museum, or relive important historical events at the Newseum. In reality, outside of elementary school field trips I really have not gone out to appreciate DC on my own and that is something that I regret, but it is not too late. The past four years of college have slowly but surely reawakened my thirst for knowledge and exploration post high school senior slump. I’m glad that I’ve taken the first step and realized that I’m letting myself take this incredible place, where I’ve been able to grow up, that is so rich in culture and history, for granted. Looking back on high school, I discussed how eager I was to finally be able to go out to bars in Washington, DC but didn’t talk enough about how I wanted to go see the latest exhibit at the Smithsonian Natural History Museum or National Gallery of Art.

My second mistake? Over the past three years I’ve had the incredible opportunity to live in a place that prides itself on being a living history, Colonial Williamsburg. The College of William and Mary and its surroundings is a hot spot for tourists, people pay lots of money and come trekking from across the country to be here and all I have to do to enjoy the sights is walk out my front door down the street and with a flash of my student ID I can enjoy all of the sights and sounds and wonders of Williamsburg. But have I ventured beyond the Peanut Shop, Aroma’s, or house dressing, nope. And I’m not proud of it. I have met innumerable history buffs that would love to switch places with me for a day just to have the opportunity to live here.

I’ve slowly started to make amends with Washington, DC. I was one of the thousands of people who braved the bitter cold to watch President Obama get inaugurated on the steps of the Capitol. Sure I was nowhere near the Capitol; I was actually on the complete opposite side of the mall on the lawn of the Washington Monument, but that’s not the point. The point is that there I was experiencing history as it happened right before my eyes, the inauguration of our first African American President. Even though I may have missed out on numerous other chances to experience history being made, here I was, changing that because it’s never too late. Just two weeks ago I was at the Smithsonian of Natural History captivated by the towering fossil of the T-Rex, double checking that I had no hitchhiking butterflies on me before exiting the butterfly room, and just feeling like I was back to my curious 8 year old self. I’ve been missing out on a lot in the incredible city that sits just across the river, but I’m so glad that I realized that I have been missing out and am now doing something about it.

Next year will be my last year as a student at the College and hopefully next time you see me walking towards CW and ask me what I’m up to I’ll say, “headed to the Cheese Shop for a sandwich…then I’m going to check out what I’ve been missing these past 3 years.