Wednesday, June 09, 2004

Moving: I stepped out of the office briefly to see President Reagan's funeral procession as it moved on its way to the Capitol. Today was much hotter and more humid than it had been in recent days. And standing in the middle of a huge crowd of people that pressed against the barriers along the street seemed to raise the temperature another 10 degrees. The police providing the security and the Marine honor guards also baked in their thick uniform coats.

But it was moving to see the ceremony, with its pomp and circumstance, after the motorcade slowly rolled up. The crowd cheered when Nancy Reagan appeared from her car. She clung tightly to the arm of her Marine escort and graciously waved to the onlookers. Then the scene became strangely quiet as the honor guards lifted the president's flag-draped casket from the Hearse and carried it to the horse-drawn carriage.

We strained to see the ceremony through the crowd. Hundreds of people's arms were raised in the air, lifting camcorders and disposable cameras to capture the event. Eventually the procession slowly moved down the street toward the Capitol. And people clapped once more as the casket moved out of sight.

The ceremony hit a crescendo when 21 Air Force jets flew by, and in a stunning display, conducted the Missing Man performance, with a single jet rocketing upwards toward the blue heavens.

Above all else, it was nice to see a Washington event that didn't involve some sort of protest. Although everybody in attendance had different views -- about politics and this president we were laying to rest -- this was a moment of respect and tribute. It was a nice reminder that we're all on the same team.