Day 12

Today on 37 Days Patti Digh talks about how life plans and personal choices can be driven by circumstances that over-take your plans and intentions.
Oh, boy is that the story of my life - and Patti makes me feel better that I am not alone in being diverted from my paths.

How about this poor guy hanging on a pole in a flea market in Nice, France? There are days when I feel that way myself - just swinging in the breeze.

Jim is home. The sun was shining all day. Masses of yellow daffodils bordered Hwy 270 on the drive to Ft. Dietrick where I was telling stories today.

Jim rode up with me because we were both curious to see this highly secure federal facility. The presence of any military is very subtle but visitors and cars are carefully checked in through a fenced and guarded entrance and then visitors have to have an escort to enter into buildings. When you sign in and receive your visitor's pass you have to turn over cameras, your cell phone if it has camera capability and your driver's license. Those measures would probably have seemed extreme ten years ago but not today - living here in the DC area security is often very high. The thing that bothers me is that we have become so numbed to it - as though it was always this way. I think its important to keep reminding ourselves that the changes on public freedoms and our sense of security which changed after 9/11 are here to stay and keep in mind what's been lost - worldwide.