Carter Center & calendar coincidence

[onepageatatime]

Yesterday, as I was flipping through Facebook, I saw one of those “_x_ years ago” posts. It was a photo I’d taken from a quiet place in the lobby of a hotel. And it reminded me of something I’d done on a trip to that city. I wasn’t sure yet whether it was that trip or not. So I did another search and found out that yes, it was the same trip. And then the dates really got to me.

 

Seven years ago today, on January 4, 2018, I made my first ever visit to a presidential library, to the Carter Presidential Center. Later today, on January 4, 2025, President Carter’s body will arrive there for a service and for members of the public to pay their respects.

 

My photos from that day (at least those I shared on Facebook) were unremarkable: a sign with the name, a photo of the entrance, and a photo of the door of the gender-neutral restroom which made me so comfortable, when I was still quite nervous every time I used the ladies room without my wife at least being in the building. But I appreciated learning more about him and his presidency.

 

He was the first US president elected in my lifetime (even though it would be more than a quarter-century after he left office before I first set foot in the United States for a visit). I have always followed the news, so I was always well aware of the work he did (especially with Habitat for Humanity and for election monitoring) after leaving the White House. 

 

It is kind of eerie to have the anniversary come up as his funeral ceremonies begin. And even more when I think that the only two “tourist attractions” I visited that trip were the Carter Center and CNN. (At least I’m pretty sure that was the same trip. There were a couple of other things on my list, but time and energy meant I didn’t do much more than that.)

 

I don’t have any personal memories: I don’t know that I’ve even read anything specific to his presidency. But sometimes it’s just funny when personal coincidences show up.