On December 7th, I made my way down from where I was staying in Arlington, VA to the National Mall. I parked on Ohio Drive near the FDR Memorial and started my morning run, past the Martin Luther King Memorial, past the sunrise shining through the back of the Jefferson Memorial, to the Washington Monument, up towards the capitol, all the way back to Union Station and then back down to end my run and start my official day off at the World War II Memorial.

I have been to the World War II memorial many times throughout my life, but this time was different. This time, with 5 weeks of immersive input and study invested, I understood it all in a whole new way. I knew what all the engravings meant, what happened in most of the places named and the bigger meaning behind the quotes and those who were saying them. For me, personally, it was a big round period at the end of a long paragraph of my own journey these last 5 weeks, and these last 25 years to develop a greater appreciation for what all of these stones were commemorating. I’ve lived my whole life with a deep, though abstract, appreciation for the importance and meaning of that time in recent history, but this was the first time I felt like I really earned my place to be at that memorial. For me, it was a solemn experience and definitely the way I had hoped to spend December 7th.

I wish I could capture the many thoughts that arose as I walked the circle paying my respects, but most of them, though feeling poignant and sharp at the time, have faded away as the morning did and left only a feeling of quiet gratitude in their wake.

I found myself lingering a little longer at this quote by Harry Truman, acutely aware that, as the last remaining members of that Greatest Generation slowly fade into the past, it is the weak grip of second and third hand memory that has to do the job of keeping this history alive.

And I felt the awareness that, only a few generations down and President Truman’s hope that we never forget, at least for some, is already stretching thin into the past. The memory exists, but, I think, for many, with a sense of distance and even irrelevance to their own lives, which I think is more a loss for us living now than anything else. I think that remembering and appreciating this history and this true heroism is not only a matter of showing appreciation for the incredible sacrifices that were made for us, but also adds a keen richness to life, augmenting our ability to savor the privileges of what many take for granted as the backdrop of life in the world today. Among the many things I hope to do and inspire with this musical, playing my part to keep that memory and that appreciation alive is one.

I then made my way through the FDR memorial which I had never been to despite my many times in D.C. Again, every stone, every quote, every plaque, every sculpture was infused with a new meaning after my self-imposed isolated immersion.

I next attempted to make a quick stop at the Eisenhower Memorial before heading out to Arlington National Cemetery, but soon realized that the time it would take me to figure out where to park would be precious time lost at the Cemetery. I had seen my share of Eisenhower tributes already, so I decided to head straight to Arlington.

I left the National Mall leaving some important places unvisited. The day before, I had enjoyed a few hours at the Smithsonian Museum of American History.

It was interesting to see another museum’s exhibits of topics I had seen now at various museums. I learned new things and relearned others. I never realized these museums were free of charge and I can’t wait to go back. I had wanted to go into the African American Museum and the Holocaust Museum. Ultimately, I decided, mostly because of time, some because of how I had already seen many wonderful exhibits in the other museums I’ve visited so far, some because of knowing that while both had plenty of history relevant and central to this time, neither are the specific focus of this particular project of this musical and some because of my own emotional fragility by this point in the trip after watching countless documentaries on various topics displaying the worst of human capacities, I would save both of those for a future trip where I could give more time and attention to each of them in their own right.

I’m not sure what to say about Arlington National Cemetery other than that it is an experience worth having that speaks wholly and profoundly for itself. To have any worthy words about it feels a task that is beyond me. I aspire, someday, to be able to put such things into words that can live up to the magnitude of such things, but, as of today, that is out of my grasp. Other than the tomb of the unknown soldier, I didn’t take any pictures of gravestones. They didn’t feel like my pictures to take and I was so wrapped up in the palpable feeling of just being there.

Being at Arlington National Cemetery, an activity I waited to do until the right time, was such a special way to honor an infamous day in history and just the right way to close up this trip. And that is how it felt. Though I am sad to say it, after my visits of December 7th, I woke up December 8th, and I felt this portal that I had been in for these last weeks, was closed. I didn’t want it to be. I woke up in the morning on December 8th and got to work on some piano compositions thinking that might reopen the feeling of that special bubble of time and memory, but, while it was fun to work on the musical, there was something that was just done – like I walked through a door and had left a room behind me, one that I had so enjoyed being in, but whose door was firmly closed behind me.

I had done it, I had finished writing the script 2 Saturdays ago, and the songs 1 Saturday ago and this last week, while I have made progress on the songs, has mostly been a combination of reveling in the amazing feeling of completion and honoring history through memorial visits. Try as I might, it seemed that my visits on December 7th had been the end of something and some parts of me were already priming to move forward, even though I had been so happy in that little bubble and wanted to stay there.

Being on the open road in this van alone with my only task to express myself creatively has been the ultimate testament and tribute to the privilege of freedom that I have inherited thanks to this generation to whom I have been bearing witness. I have experienced such a deep and tremendous sense of freedom that I will treasure for the rest of my life. AND it has certainly given me a taste for the open road that I will continue to partake of in trips to come!

Throughout this whole trip, I have had the feeling that I am doing something that I was born to do. Whether I put it out into the world at all, writing this musical is something that comes from the depths of who I am. It has been an amazing experience to feel completely immersed and focused on an activity with such a strong sense of “this is where I belong”. Not that writing a musical or this musical is the only thing I feel a deep sense of purpose around doing, but it is solidly in that groove. I have loved every single second of it – even the ones where I was overwhelmed with the emotion of the history I was forcing myself to look at over and over, even the moments where I really wasn’t sure I could do the task in front of me, or the moments I did do it and wasn’t sure I had made anything particularly good. All of those moments were fleeting, but still part of the richness of the effort to create something. This thing that has existed in me in an abstract form for 25 years now exists physically. It’s a good feeling.

As for the last week before December 7th rolled around, I had kicked off the first day after having completed last Saturday’s blog post by visiting our friends in their gorgeous home on the sound in North Carolina. I hadn’t been sure if I would swing by until I finished the musical as I didn’t want to distract myself from the task or risk not succeeding. But, since I was in their neighborhood after doing so, I did . It was awesome to see them and a great way to celebrate with some qt with good friends and some lovely relaxation. Good people make all the difference in a good life, and a good world, and these people are just that. Thanks, Suzanne and Andy for sharing a slice of your heaven on earth with me! Not to mention, your indoor plumbing! Oh, and thanks to their hot tip, I spent my first overnight in a Cracker Barrel parking lot!

Then I made my way to Bedford, Virginia, home of the National D-Day Memorial and a Tribute Center to the Beford Boys. Bedford was chosen as the site of the National D-Day Memorial because, as a percentage of their population, they lost more men on D-Day than any other community in the nation. Within the first 10 minutes of the invasion, Bedford lost 19 of their sons, and a few more in the days that followed. With a town of a population of 3,200, this was, of course a devastating loss and a mirror for the pain and sacrifice that hundreds of thousands of American families made during that time (and millions upon millions in the world).

I had a lovely talk with one of the creators of the Tribute Center in the center of Bedford, discussing all manor of life on the homefront as she was eager and generous in helping me paint an accurate picture of it for the musical. I mentioned I’d love to come and do a reading of the musical in Bedford, and she was enthusiastic that I do so. That would be so neat if I’m able to pull it off!

I LOVED my stay at the Orchard in the beautiful rolling hills of Virginia. I know John Denver’s song was about West Virginia, but if it is anything like Virginia, I can see being inspired to music by driving through those country roads.

Through the week, I coordinated with my friend Alane as we both worked our nerdy planning magic to delegate roles in pulling together the logistics of our upcoming Amsterdam/Paris/Normandy trip. As you can imagine, once again, colorful spreadsheets were involved. I created one and sent it to Alane. The way I know I’m going with the right person, she not only loved it, but let me know she was adding a sheet to track finances. I am among my people.

I coordinated with my future D-Day tour guide (https://normandy44-tours.com), Olivier, to create a personalized tour that would combine D-Day sites with those relevant to the plot in the second act of the musical. He will take me to sites that could potentially have been the places where Wally, one of the play’s main characters, ends up fighting.

As far as the musical goes, this is the first week that I did not accomplish the goal I had originally set, that is to finish piano compositions and the instrumental elements of all of the songs. I started down that path and then found myself feeling that what I had completed was enough for this trip, that I just wanted to revel in it, soak it up and enjoy the sites I was visiting. When I did work on the piano arrangements, I quickly got the sense that this would be a creative process of sitting, marinating, cooking and would accompany me over the the journey of the long process in front of me of editing my first draft, going deep into research. Yes, I have finished a draft of the musical, but now is the hard part – editing for all the little nuances, whether they be points of historical accuracy, massaging thematic elements and messages that come through or refining it as a piece of art. I finished stage 1 of the musical writing process, doing the creative dump, getting the story that has been inside of me out onto the page. Now, stage 2 will be a long process of refinement.

I am writing today’s post at a Harvest Host in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. When my Aunt Cathy heard about this trip, she was quick to suggest I swing by Carlisle where my Grandpa Irving had his army training. Today, I will swing by their local Education Center where I believe there is an archives. Perhaps I will see a record of him! A neat way to finish up the World War II portion of the trip. Two days ago was the big picture commemoration, and today, will finish things back home, in my own personal history. And then, tonight, I’m off to the Big Apple to finish the whole trip on Broadway. Gotta finish the musical writing trip in the home of musicals! Perhaps, someday, I’ll be there backstage before curtain rises to rave reviews of Janey’s War. This time, I’ll be there on the front side of the curtain, happily in the audience, ready to enjoy the musicals that I love so much. Then I’ll head home for a very brief stop to enjoy some qt with my guy before I hop on a plane on Tuesday morning for Amsterdam.

I started the trip with the goal to get to the World War II museum in New Orleans by Veterans Day. And I had hoped to arrive in Washington D.C. with a finished first draft of the musical in hand for December 7th. And so it was! I can’t believe I did it. I CAN believe it because it happened and because, though ambitious at the outset, it also feels the most natural thing in the world. But, also, I still can’t believe it! Now, I have new hopes and new dreams to strive for – and I look forward to facing the moments of doubt, breakthrough, inspiration and awe that will be inevitable parts of the obstacle course ahead. It’s all part of the fun and the adventure. And just as with this dream come true that I’ve so enjoyed reveling in, I look forward to seeing these next dreams come true too!