It was not as thickly crowded as the 1st March 4 years ago, but there was still a crowd, peaceful, serious, nice to each other, most bearing signs. As I usually do, I concentrated on the handmade signs, thinking them more powerful than the mass printed ones. There were speeches broadcast on huge TV screens along Constitution Ave. David Hogg, a Parkland survivor, was speaking as I arrived, and Emma Gonzalez, also from Parkland, was speaking as I left a couple of hours later. Thematic emphasis was on voting out legislators that have not acted on gun control, and voting in legislators who intend to do so. We were encouraged to keep at it since such major change does not happen quickly.

I noticed that the World Kitchen had provided drinking water for everyone, and that Gabby Giffords' organization had laid out a model cemetery of white cones, some filled with orange flowers, representing those who had died from gun violence. Orange seems to have become the significant color for gun control advocates; many in the crowd wore orange t-shirts.

The nicest thing was that several folks, noting my white hair and walking stick, thanked me for coming out with them. That was the kind of crowd it was.