Elder & Sister Lindsay surrounded by cherry blossoms
On March 21st, seven senior missionaries from The Maryland Baltimore Mission went to Washington, DC to enjoy the beauty of thousands of flowering cherry trees. The breath-taking white and pink blooms were in their prime at the Tidal Basin and the area adjacent to the National Mall on the day we were there. The National Cherry Blossom Festival began in 1935 and is now one of the largest annual public events hosted by the United States. Over one million people are expected to visit during the two week activity this year.
This year marks the 100th year since these Japanese flowering cherry trees were first planted in the Nation's Capitol. More than 3,000 trees were given to the City of Washington by the City of Tokyo in 1912. Although the average life of a flowering cherry tree is about 50 years, at least 100 of the original trees have survived and are still blooming after a century. Many of the replacements have been grown from grafts that came from the original trees.
The Jefferson Memorial is framed by cherry blossoms
Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything beautiful, for beauty is God's handwriting.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson
While we slowly walked around the Tidal Basin, we saw many other people also enjoying the natural beauty of spring, which came early this year after a mild winter. Along the way, we also met two other small groups of Church missionaries who are serving in the Washington, DC North Mission.
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