Where It Happens...

We all get a bit jaded when surroundings become familiar. I've been going to Washington, DC, as an advocate for Idaho wilderness since the mid-1980s, so walking beside the U.S. Capitol is a relatively common experience.

But there are times when it is an entirely uncommon experience. Last night was one of those.

Leaving a long evening meeting with Rep. Walt Minnick (D-Idaho), we approached the brightly lit dome familiar to all Americans, extraordinarily bright and huge against a black night sky. As we were about to part, Rep. Minnick suggested we go in. As a member of Congress, the U.S. Capitol is, in a sense, his office. 

Night is when the building is at its atmospheric best; no one who cares about what government can do can remain unmoved walking the empty halls so full of history, hearing the echoes of your footsteps, and looking in the eyes of the portraits and statues.

Alone, we stood under the dome and talked. We walked among the historic desks on the empty floor of the Senate, and after crossing the floor of the House, we stepped onto the Speaker's Balcony, where the Mall extends from Capital Hill to the Washington Monument and on to the Lincoln Memorial. There I took this picture with my phone.

Many times on our walk we stopped to soak it all in. Some things we said out loud, others remained unstated.

Imperfect as it may be, this is where much of what we call America happens.