Not Yet Gassed Up Nor Ready To Go

Greetings: I am building this blog so that in a few short months I can take it, and you, on the road with me as I travel around to select American cities and municipalities that have scheduled a visit from The Moving Wall (MV). The Moving Wall is the original (no knock-off here) mobile replica of Washington, DC's, Vietnam Veterans Memorial (VVM). In 1984, with the help of The National Park Service (which tends to the VVM), The Moving Wall's designers copied the memorial's layout and better than 58,000 names, and transposed them onto a series of 4x8 panels which, when assembled, attempts to recreate for people far and wide that capital experience. Since 1984, The Moving Wall has toured from spring to fall, and has been installed in over a thousand towns and cities in North America and Hawaii. It has even toured some in Southeast Asia. An accurate estimate of the number of visitors who've passed before it, touched a name, said a prayer, shed a tear, would be impossible, but my guess is that we're talking multiple millions. Think of it: if only 1,000 people visited the MV at each of its 1,000 sites, that alone would be 1,000,000. So multiple-millions is clearly a legitimate estimate. And yet, who actually knows about the MV, apart from the grateful vets, their families and friends, and others paying respect who've visited The Moving Wall? It is one of America's best kept secrets. And while I don't want to force unwanted notoriety on the folks who move The Moving Wall, I do think this is a story that needs telling. That is why I have created this blog, in part to tell the story of The Moving Wall; in part to tell the stories of the people behind The Moving Wall; in part to tell the stories of the people who visit The Moving Wall. I hope that by the end of Rolling With The Moving Wall, you will share the belief with me that indeed, this is a great American story, deserving a true American tribute.

In the weeks ahead, I will be adding some background material on The Moving Wall, how it came to be, how I came to know of it, and why I think it's so significant. Please check back. And if you have visited or hosted The Moving Wall, and would like to share your reflections on it, please go to the Comments section below and reflect away.