In the story “Atop A Horse, A General. On Bended Knee, A Man.” I wrote of my love of depictions of General George Washington kneeling in prayer at Valley Forge. There is something so profoundly moving to me about this man, who we have elevated to a height not reached by many mortals, performing one of the most human things we can do.
I recently completed another trip around the sun. A few days before the actual day, a package arrived that, for once, I had not ordered but my husband had. We were going to be away on my birthday, so he set the box on the dining room table where I was sitting, leaving for a minute to get the box cutter from the junk drawer in the kitchen. “Since we won’t be here on the big day, you should open this now.”
There was writing on the tape that held the box closed but I could not see it. I didn’t want to know what it said anyway, I wanted to be surprised. Slicing through the tape, I found packing peanuts (“Picking Up The Peanuts”); in their midst was a beautifully wrapped gift complete with a bow, the wrapping paper covered in something I also did not want to identify. Removing the pretty present from its cocoon inside the box, peanuts going everywhere, I gently tugged the bow’s two ends. I found a place on the side where I could slide my fingers into the paper to free its contents. Opening the item’s box and pulling out two halves of a molded styrofoam casing, I carefully separated them, protecting the mystery gift inside, a small figure of General Washington kneeling in prayer.
I do not know why we are drawn to the things that we are, but I was immediately obsessed with my new statue of a moment I have been intrigued by for many years. I traced my finger over the General’s face, his boots and his sword. I rubbed the tip of my finger on his hands clasped in prayer. It moved me, as did Mister Rain’s thoughtfulness.
Looking at the underside of the base of the figure I asked my husband what it said. He read the following:
“I now make it my earnest prayer, that God would have the United States in his holy protection . . .”
Amen.
It was, for me, the perfect gift: my own personal sculpture of a good man given to me by a guy who is pretty darn good himself.
Sister Rain Note:
My husband purchased this sculpture from The Shops At Mount Vernon (click here).
#sisterrain #alittlesightalotofheart #legallyblindwriter #writer #writersofinstagram #ushistory #history #americanhistory #usa #america #unitedstates #americanrevolution #mountvernon #georgewashington #acouplegoodmen
