It is NOT about food and beer.
It IS about REMEMBERING.
REMEMBERING those who have given their all...so that we might be Free....
and just exactly what WE owe them.
redrock
redrock
BUMP for this Memorial Day thread.
Semper Fi
Freedom Is Worth Fighting For !!
Molon Labe !!
"If you are able, save for them a place inside of you and save one backward glance when you are leaving for the places they can no longer go.
Be not ashamed to say you loved them, though you may or may not have always. Take what they have taught you with their dying and keep it with your own.
And in that time when men decide and feel safe to call the war insane, take one moment to embrace those gentle heroes you left behind."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Major Michael O'Donnell
KIA March 24, 1970
Dak To, Vietnam
A Proclamation
Since the end of the Civil War, Memorial Day has been the time when we honor the American men and women who gave up their lives on the field of battle. We do this in recognition of the enormous sacrifice they have made to preserve our liberty and, also, of the responsibility we bear to transmit liberty to future generations.
Memorial Day is an opportunity to remember that those who died in the defense of our country were serving an even higher cause. For all through our history, America has been a beacon to other peoples, serving as a source of political inspiration, a haven for the poor and oppressed, and a friend to nations in distress. Today, as so often in the past, we stand as a guarantor of peace. In full accord with our national ideals and responsibilities, we are prepared to assist countries threatened by economic upheaval or international violence. And we stand ready to work together with other nations to remove the sources of conflict and insecurity and build a firm foundation for peace in the future.
In recognition of those Americans to whom we pay tribute today, the Congress, by joint resolution of May 11, 1950 (64 Stat. 158), has requested the President to issue a proclamation calling upon the people of the United States to observe each Memorial Day as a day of prayer for permanent peace and designating a period on that day when the people of the United States might unite in prayer.
Now, Therefore, I, Ronald Reagan, President of the United States of America, do hereby designate Memorial Day, Monday, May 31, 1982, as a day of prayer for permanent peace, and I designate the hour beginning in each locality at 11 o'clock in the morning of that day as a time to unite in prayer. I urge the press, radio, television, and all other information media to cooperate in this observance.
I also request the Governors of the United States and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the appropriate officials of all local units of government to direct that the flag be flown at half-staff during this Memorial Day on all buildings, grounds, and naval vessels throughout the United States and in all areas under its jurisdiction and control, and I request the people of the United States to display the flag at half-staff from their homes for the customary forenoon period.
In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 16th day of April in the year of our Lord nineteen hundred and eighty-two, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and sixth.
Ronald Reagan
[Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 10:14 a.m., April 19, 1982]
The greatest insult to the memory of all those who gave their all for the sake of this nation's future, would be if we, let the fruit of their sacrifice, slip from between our fingers, and into the hands of men of evil intent.
Your story brings a scene to my mind, which I shall attempt to describe.
Standing upon the hill of decision, seeking the Creator's guidence, you might see out of the corner of an eye, a farmer, next to his plow. musket in hand, alert for an approaching enemy. Then, just at the furthermost reaches of sight, two men approach; one wears Blue, the other Gray. They silently join you, united against a common foe. From the other direction, three more men are seen, approaching. One soaked in sweat, carrying a Tommy Gun, the second, struggles up the hill, burdened by his artic gear and M-1 Garand; helped by the third, M-16 slung and face painted in jungle camo. Behind them, wearing a broad smile across his face, beneath the shadow of his painted steel pot, carrying his faithful Springfield rifle, comes a fourth..
A voice speaks to your heart, telling you that you're not alone on this hill. Surrounding you are represenatives of the hundreds upon thousands who have stood here in the past. They made a decision, one which they did not regret; for they gave their all, that this nation, under God, did not perish from the earth.
Today, we all, stand upon the hill of decision, surrounded by the memories, hopes and dreams of all those in whose footsteps we now stand. Their memory is part of God's Grace, which will see us courageously through the day.
Thank-you, Bro, for starting this thread.
4/19!
minuteman
redrock