First Memorial Experience Recollections

By Paul Reilly

                I extend my legs getting out of the cool car. Stretching after having enjoyed food at some unknown fast food restaurant I assume since that’s generally how my mother bribed my brother and me into behaving on our trips to historical places she deemed necessary for our education. I remember the columns of the entrance and the unbearable sun reflecting off of them. I don’t know how but we end up inside the house in a tour group. I watched as the tour guide explained how Jefferson built his house and the amount of care and innovation he put into it. I remember enjoying Jefferson’s house probably because the inside seemed interactive and I loved science back then. Finding out how objects worked excited me. I can remember a door that opened both sides if one door knob was turned. I must have looked out across the plantation; seeing the trees surround the mountain to home, vegetable gardens, and tourists, but in my mind I only see my brother, mother, and myself learning about Jefferson and his legacy preserved at Monticello. I enjoyed that trip and my mom always comments about how adorable my brother and I were looking at the gadgets and architecture of the house. Along with this memory I distinctly remember my brother crying after falling down somewhere. I can remember this detail because of a picture my mom has of my brother and I in front of the columns. In the picture he has a scraped knee. I look back on this family outing and smile. I enjoyed learning so much as a child and can't help but wonder where all that enthusiasm went.

Paul Reilly