Memorial Day

[Sam]

On Monday, May 25th we will celebrate Memorial Day...

Remember our military men and women on Memorial Day. Think about those who have given their lives so we could enjoy what we have today. Also, think of those who are alive and serving our country and be sure to pray for them.

I remember many, many years ago when we would celebrate that holiday in our small town in Wisconsin. Back then some called it "Decoration Day."

The men who were veterans stuffed themselves into their old uniforms and marched through town. I think the parade started in our local park then headed north on Main Street (the only street in our “business district”). The local High School band, the Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, and Girl Scouts also marched. Then anyone who wanted to joined in and followed along behind the parade: some walking; some riding tricycles or bicycles; some pushing baby buggies; and many carrying and waving small flags.

We stopped at a local school auditorium and had a brief service which included reading the poem "In Flanders Fields". Then we continued on to the local cemetery where a ceremonial wreath was laid on a grave, "Taps" was played on a bugle, and several members of the American Legion, standing in formation, fired a salute into the air. We kids all dived to retrieve the ejected cartridges which were still hot.

That song, “Taps, ” always sounded sad to me. It was played to honor the veterans who were asleep in death. When we were in Scout camp later, “Taps” would be played to signal the end of the day and time to turn out the lights and go to sleep for the night. Some time later I found the words and they are really meaningful. There are several versions of the song and I don’t think there is an “official” version. This is one that I like:

Day is done, gone the sun,
From the hills, from the lake,
From the sky.
All is well, safely rest,
God is nigh.
Go to sleep, peaceful sleep,
May the soldier or sailor,
God keep.
On the land or the deep,
Safe in sleep.
Love, good night, Must thou go,
When the day, And the night
Need thee so?
All is well. Speedeth all
To their rest.
Fades the light; And afar
Goeth day, And the stars
Shineth bright,
Fare thee well; Day has gone,
Night is on.
Thanks and praise, For our days,
'Neath the sun, Neath the stars,
'Neath the sky,
As we go, This we know,
God is nigh.

Here is a story about the origin of the poem “In Flanders Fields” and the words to that poem:
In Flanders Fields
By: Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD (1872-1918)
Canadian Army

In Flanders Fields the poppies blow 
Between the crosses row on row, 
That mark our place; and in the sky 
The larks, still bravely singing, fly 
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago 
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, 
Loved and were loved, and now we lie 
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe: 
To you from failing hands we throw 
The torch; be yours to hold it high. 
If ye break faith with us who die 
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow 
In Flanders fields.

McCrae's "In Flanders Fields" remains to this day one of the most memorable war poems ever written. It is a lasting legacy of the terrible battle in the Ypres salient in the spring of 1915. Here is the story of the making of that poem:

Although he had been a doctor for years and had served in the South African War, it was impossible to get used to the suffering, the screams, and the blood here, and Major John McCrae had seen and heard enough in his dressing station to last him a lifetime.
As a surgeon attached to the 1st Field Artillery Brigade, Major McCrae, who had joined the McGill faculty in 1900 after graduating from the University of Toronto, had spent seventeen days treating injured men -- Canadians, British, Indians, French, and Germans -- in the Ypres salient.
It had been an ordeal that he had hardly thought possible. McCrae later wrote of it:
"I wish I could embody on paper some of the varied sensations of that seventeen days... Seventeen days of Hades! At the end of the first day if anyone had told us we had to spend seventeen days there, we would have folded our hands and said it could not have been done."
One death particularly affected McCrae. A young friend and former student, Lieut. Alexis Helmer of Ottawa, had been killed by a shell burst on 2 May 1915. Lieutenant Helmer was buried later that day in the little cemetery outside McCrae's dressing station, and McCrae had performed the funeral ceremony in the absence of the chaplain.
The next day, sitting on the back of an ambulance parked near the dressing station beside the Canal de l'Yser, just a few hundred yards north of Ypres, McCrae vented his anguish by composing a poem. The major was no stranger to writing, having authored several medical texts besides dabbling in poetry.
In the nearby cemetery, McCrae could see the wild poppies that sprang up in the ditches in that part of Europe, and he spent twenty minutes of precious rest time scribbling fifteen lines of verse in a notebook.
A young soldier watched him write it. Cyril Allinson, a twenty-two year old sergeant-major, was delivering mail that day when he spotted McCrae. The major looked up as Allinson approached, then went on writing while the sergeant-major stood there quietly. "His face was very tired but calm as we wrote," Allinson recalled. "He looked around from time to time, his eyes straying to Helmer's grave."
When McCrae finished five minutes later, he took his mail from Allinson and, without saying a word, handed his pad to the young NCO. Allinson was moved by what he read:
"The poem was exactly an exact description of the scene in front of us both. He used the word “blow” in that line because the poppies actually were being blown that morning by a gentle east wind. It never occurred to me at that time that it would ever be published. It seemed to me just an exact description of the scene."
In fact, it was very nearly not published. Dissatisfied with it, McCrae tossed the poem away, but a fellow officer retrieved it and sent it to newspapers in England. The Spectator, in London, rejected it, but Punch published it on 8 December 1915.

[ChTatum]

Thanks for the reminder, brother. Sunday is Youth Sunday, but we are doing a power-point presentation honoring those who have served and are serving.

[Sinatra]

My children both "adopted" soldiers who are serving in Iraq. They send letters, cards, and care packages. Letters or cards every 2 weeks, care packages, every other month.

They also are participating by sending cards to soldiers that are hospitalized.

They became involved w/ this because their cousin served 3 tours in Iraq and they know how much getting mail on a regular basis meant to him. Also to show appreciation for the soldiers and their sacrifice.

Sinatra

[misspresley]

U.S. Veterans deserve a personal "thank you" for their contribution to the defense of the United States and other countries they were sent to serve. We become so blinded by politics that we forget their sacrifice of years taken from their lives to defend. Fly a flag this weekend to let everyone know you remember and appreciate our veterans!! I'm married to a Viet Nam veteran who likes to hear a "thank you" every once in a while for that time served.

[Sam]

Commentary by Gen. Donald Hoffman
Commander, Air Force Materiel Command

5/19/2009 - WRIGHT-PATTERSON AIR FORCE BASE, Ohio -- More than 1.3 million Americans have fought and died on behalf of our country during the past 233 years. Except for Afghanistan and Iraq, those wars and conflicts have receded into the pages of history books. But our country was not built on history books. It was built on the backs of men and women who believed in the fundamental principles of freedom, principles for which they were willing to put their lives on the line.

I was recently TDY in Europe and had the opportunity to visit the American Cemetery at St. Mihiel, France. Buried there are 4,153 Americans who gave their lives defending the freedom of others. It is just one of many cemeteries around the world where we honor those who have made the ultimate sacrifice.

On Memorial Day, we owe these people more than a day off of work, a backyard barbecue or a day at the water park. I plan to stop wherever I am and whatever I'm doing on Memorial Day at 3 p.m. for the National Moment of Remembrance. I hope you will too. Take a moment to reflect on the sacrifices made and the lives lost in the name of freedom.

Our history is full of stories of ordinary people who displayed extraordinary heroism. No doubt our future holds more amazing stories of heartache and heroism. Some of those stories are playing out now in current conflicts around the world. These are stories that bind us together, as one, under the Stars and Stripes of the United States of America. They're the stories of real people whose loved ones suffered and mourned. Let us never forget to honor them all.

[GraceAmazing]

Originally Posted by Sinatra

My children both "adopted" soldiers who are serving in Iraq. They send letters, cards, and care packages. Letters or cards every 2 weeks, care packages, every other month.

They also are participating by sending cards to soldiers that are hospitalized.

They became involved w/ this because their cousin served 3 tours in Iraq and they know how much getting mail on a regular basis meant to him. Also to show appreciation for the soldiers and their sacrifice.

Sinatra

That is so neat! What a lesson that you are instilling into your children. When I was in the 8th grade, I adopted a solider. We are still in contact to this day! It meant the world to him, but I think it meant even more to me!

[Sinatra]

Originally Posted by Sinatra

My children both "adopted" soldiers who are serving in Iraq. They send letters, cards, and care packages. Letters or cards every 2 weeks, care packages, every other month.

They also are participating by sending cards to soldiers that are hospitalized.

They became involved w/ this because their cousin served 3 tours in Iraq and they know how much getting mail on a regular basis meant to him. Also to show appreciation for the soldiers and their sacrifice.

Sinatra

Originally Posted by GraceAmazing

That is so neat! What a lesson that you are instilling into your children. When I was in the 8th grade, I adopted a solider. We are still in contact to this day! It meant the world to him, but I think it meant even more to me!

I think it's pretty neat. They have been doing this for several years. Some that they have adopted have since come home, and as they do, they adopt new soldiers. My daughter is still in touch w/ one who has come home.

My children are the ones blessed by this, they have built friendships w/ some, they have been able to share their faith w/ others and they have learned to pray for all of them.

As a side note, we have had several serve in the armed forces.

My MIL's brother served in WWII, was captured by Germans and sent to a concentration camp until the end of the war. One of my uncles served in Vietnam, another fought in Korea, and my nephew Anthony in Iraq. Some never saw action, but they did serve and sacrifice for their country. (I ramble)

As a country, we have much to be thankful for and as a family we are thankful for all those who have served in the Forces and who now serve.

Sinatra

[Scott Hutchinson]

I can never forget my Grandfather Ray Hutchinson who served in WW2 in The US. Air Army Corp,a man proud to serve if every there was one,he paid a price for his service.
My cousins and I were not allowed to shoot fireworks at their house,because that sort of noise would disturb my grandfather.
My grandfather had to guard Japenese prisoners and the things he experienced affected him his whole life,he had to do things in his military duty and he felt like God withheld forgiveness from him.

Before he died he felt that God was not mad at him,he carried guilt feelings for most for life.

[Sinatra]

BUMP for Talk Lady

[TalkLady]

Hey...Thanks. My dad is a WWII veteran and a distinguished one at that. He has a whole suitcase of medals. All of those who fought or served at home were/are heroes - medals or no medals.