This weekend is about a lot more than backyard BBQ's and time spent off work with family and friends. This weekend and Monday are about remembering those brave men and women who have sacrificed for our great country. Let us not forget, and let us take the time to remember them and thank God for them and their families. In this time of war let us be especially mindful of all our current men and women serving in the armed forces and the families here at home who miss them.FREEDOM IS NOT FREE.
I watched the flag pass by one day.
It fluttered in the breeze.
A young Marine saluted it,
and then he stood at ease.
I looked at him in uniform
So young, so tall, so proud,
He'd stand out in any crowd.
I thought how many men like him
Had fallen through the years.
How many died on foreign soil?
How many mothers' tears?
How many pilots' planes shot down?
How many died at sea?
How many foxholes were soldiers' graves?
No, freedom isn't free.
I heard the sound of taps one night,
when everything was still
I listened to the bugler play
And felt a sudden chill.
I wondered just how many times
That taps had meant "Amen,"
When a flag had draped a coffin
Of a brother or a friend.
I thought of all the children,
Of the mothers and the wives,
Of fathers, sons and husbands
With interrupted lives.
I thought about a graveyard
At the bottom of the sea
Of unmarked graves in Arlington..
No, freedom isn't free.
LCDR Kelly Strong, USCG~
So young, so tall, so proud,
He'd stand out in any crowd.
I thought how many men like him
Had fallen through the years.
How many died on foreign soil?
How many mothers' tears?
How many pilots' planes shot down?
How many died at sea?
How many foxholes were soldiers' graves?
No, freedom isn't free.
I heard the sound of taps one night,
when everything was still
I listened to the bugler play
And felt a sudden chill.
I wondered just how many times
That taps had meant "Amen,"
When a flag had draped a coffin
Of a brother or a friend.
I thought of all the children,
Of the mothers and the wives,
Of fathers, sons and husbands
With interrupted lives.
I thought about a graveyard
At the bottom of the sea
Of unmarked graves in Arlington..
No, freedom isn't free.
LCDR Kelly Strong, USCG~
2 comments:
Thanks for this post, NT. All weekend I've been particularly mindful of the families who are remembering their sacrificed loved ones. I get choked up to think of all the ordinary people (families affected) who are in the military dedicated to preserving our freedom while I go about my daily life virtually without a care.
No, it isn't free. The price has been some very great and brave men and women who were willing to lay down their lives for this great country!
Selfless acts of courage, bravery beyond human limitations, dedication to principles, love for our country and what it stands for, separation from family and friends, commitment to freedom... these are a few of the qualities our great men and women of the military demonstrate.
I am in awe and ever grateful and SO thankful to each one for their service AND for this great country. I ask God to help me remember to pray for all those who are protecting our freedom.
Since Memorial Day has always been May 30, I have left my flag flying all this week. I grew up during WWII, so I have seen many family and friends serve in the military, including my dad and brother, uncles, first husband and neighbors. One of my former neighbors lost her only son in Vietnam. He was only 19 years old. I began to realize her sacrifice when my own son was that age, and I wrote the following poem for her. Every Memorial Day I would take her red flowers, to let her know someone had not forgotten the price that she had paid.
"For Freedom's Sake"
Fallen soldiers - silent now-
Their voice for freedom stilled.
Their lives cut down-left down-
On a foreign battlefield.
How they hoped they would matter,
Their lives a difference make.
They didn't ask for special favor,
They went for freedom's sake.
Now homes are empty, sons and fathers
Gone, but for memories.
While we partake of freedom sweet,
And forget their sacrifices.
Let us remember evermore,
With their lives they paid our price.
For liberty that we enjoy-
Our home and family and peace.
Ring out the bells, loud and clear,
Our declarations make known.
We won't forget-we won't ignore
Our soldiers, our fallen, our own.
Thus their voices will live on,
Their lives a difference make.
While we stand silent, grateful still,
"They went for freedom's sake".
World War 1, World War II,
Korea and Vietnam,
Gulf War, Bosnia, Kosovo,
We remember our Veterans.
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