if there was one thing i didn't expect to hear last night, it was "this little light of mine."

the boss let us out an hour early last night, thanking us for a job well done, so i hurried home, attempted to go for my run (although my body really wasn't feeling it at the time, so it was just an abbreviated version of my normal route), took a shower and headed back to the capitol for the candlelight vigil that had been announced at the reflecting pool. my candlelight vigil experience last year was so memorable that i wanted to be able to experience another one--albeit one that i knew would not be comparable to the previous year. more like apples and oranges.

it was a beautiful night, as the skies were clear and washington is gracefully easing from summer into autumn. i walked from union station to the west side of the capitol building, talking with a guy who was heading to the vigil as well. when i arrived at the reflecting pool, those gathered had formed a ring around the pool and had begun to light their candles. the sun was setting, so the washington monumen and lincoln memorial were illuminated by lights, white against the lilac, pink and orange sky, the candles glimmering in front (i brought my camera, so hopefully my shots will come out). there was a large group and i settled down on the steps in front of a statue so i could observe the crowd.

it started off formally enough: two military bugalists led the crowd in "america the beautiful", then walked away from each other and gave a chillingly beautiful rendition of "taps" before walking away. at that point, the vigil took a freeform turn. people started singing "god bless america," "amazing grace," the national anthem, and whatnot. because of the size of the group and the distance from one side of the pool to the other, an unintentional round of each song was the result--but it was a nice touch. it was difficult to keep the candles lit because of the breeze, but people tried and many were able to. if a candle went out, nearby flames were offered to relight it. news cameras roamed the group, capturing the expected images of hands holding candles and faces illuminated by the light. i stayed at my perch for about twenty minutes before moving about myself. i moved to a group standing in front of a backdrop of the stark white capitol against the night sky and took some pictures of the impressive sight. then i tried to relight my candle with a lighter. i was having difficulty and a cameraman was watching me try, so he lit the candle for me while i cupped my hand around it to protect the flame.

"i want this shot," he said with a smile. strange to go from covering the news to being covered--i prefer covering it, thank you very much.

and as i was leaving, someone started singing "this little light of mine." so i stopped and sang along before i headed home.

i was interested in seeing how this vigil would compare to "our" vigil, and i found it comforting in an entirely new way. at the st. michael's vigil, i knew everyone--or at least, knew of everyone--and was surrounded by close friends, sharing out shock and grief. being able to raise money for the red cross was an amazing process and increidbly uplifting. at this service, i didn't know anyone, but we had all come together to share what we did have in common--a need to remember. while there were many more people at this one, the sense of comradery was still there, but more of a dogged comradery--naturally it was not as raw as last year.

i'm certainly glad i was there. it was a surreal end to a surreal day.