Walking around the State Capitol building on Veteran’s Day, it occurred to me again how strange its monuments would seem to visitors from another planet.
“Why do you celebrate war so much?” they might ask.
Good question. The Capitol grounds are peppered with statues of warriors toting weapons. Kids play on cannons and machine guns. Its as if conflict is the only path to glory.
But where are the peacemakers? Why are there no statues of Dr. Martin Luther King? Or Mother Teresa? Or the countless home-grown heroes in every town of our great state, quietly doing their part to make a difference in someone’s life? The teacher, police officer, coach, or parent: the one person who gave a kid a glimpse of his or her potential.
Then I remember the statue of Mahatma Gandhi, forever strolling outside of Marbles Kids Museum, and it gives me hope that someday we’ll get it right.