The Shot Heard 'Round the World
April 19, 2015 by Richard Michael
Forty years ago today, I worked the midnight shift at the United Parcel Service hub in Watertown, Massachusetts. The shift ended at around 3 a.m. I got into my car and drove the few miles to Lexington and parked in a neighborhood somewhat north of the green.
I went to the Lexington Green where a crowd was already gathering. We all waited and watched the reenactment unfold in the dark at around 5 a.m.
I had never been to Lexington before. I had no idea how to get to the Old North Bridge in Concord from where I was.
As the reenactment ended, some of the crowd started walking west. They were going to Concord (about 8 miles away) for the next reenactment. Part of the time we walked through a wildlife sanctuary (a short-cut) along a wide path.
By the time we all got to the Old North Bridge, the sun was up and there was a huge crowd already there. Gerald Ford was going to give a speech near the bridge, so everything was already secured. We couldn't get any closer. We watched from a bluff on the east side of the Concord River.
The path is already there. It doesn't take much to follow. Don't think about it. Don't make excuses. Just do it.