It was a great day here. This is the third one I've spent in the East-
the 223rd in Beijing with a bunch of Marines on embassy duty, the
228th on the high plateau in the midst of bear country with a bunch of
nomads, and now the 233rd grilling burgers and shooting off fireworks
in a concrete courtyard while Tibetan kids played basketball and older
folks danced beside the incense shrine. From a distance and in the
middle of a completely different reality- the things that we sing
about America, the lines from famous declarations and speeches, the
words that we don't nearly so often ponder as we recite- they ring out
the more true, and the promises of equality, liberty, and justice
shine out more brightly.
