Today Is Flag Day

self | June 14, 2013 | knarf

[knarf]

At least, as I remember it from some ... 58 years ago .. it is

[knarf]

I remember getting all dressed up for school in a white shirt ... don't remember the pants, but the shirt started out white.

Flag Day was a Boston Public School celebration primarily for the elementary grades and I remember myself around 1st or second grade.

We were to march down to Fallon Feild for a speech or something and it was SUCH a big thing for us.

Now, we all had to be in 'uniform' which was a piece of construction paper, cut in half lengthwise and colored red, white (y'LEFT it white, dumbo) and blue and Little kids couldn't be trusted with water colors .. they were for the big kids .. 4th grade and up, if I remember correctly, so we had to use crayons. Once colored, the two pieces were stapled together to form a familiar military style 'cap' (shut up, you guys .. )

And as I recall, this one. particular June 14 was hot ... sweaty hot.

I am one of eight kids and 6 of us are boys, at THIS time of life though, I think all we had were 4 boys and my father was a stickler on our proper manner of dress.

We had shined shoes for school, clean clothes and most important of all .. our hair had to be slicked down with Vaseline Petroleum Jelly.

So, on that hot June 14th of somewhere in the 1956 or 7, Science class came to life with heat, sweat, white shirt and wax color crayons.

All I remember after that was a look of dismay on my mother's face when I got home, all smiles and red stained.

So today;

I pledge allegience
To the flag
of the United States of America
and to the Republic
for which it stands
one nation
under God
indivisable
with liberty
and justice
for all

[Diogenesis]

I - - Me; an individual; a committee of one.

Pledge - - Dedicate all of my worldly goods to give without self-pity.

Allegiance - - My love and my devotion.

To the Flag - - Our standard; Old Glory ; a symbol of Freedom; wherever she waves there is respect, because your loyalty has given her a dignity that shouts, Freedom is everybody's job.

United - - That means that we have all come together.

States - - Individual communities that have united into forty-eight great states. Forty-eight individual communities with pride and dignity and purpose. All divided with imaginary boundaries, yet united to a common purpose, and that is love for country.

And to the Republic - - Republic--a state in which sovereign power is invested in representatives chosen by the people to govern. And government is the people; and it's from the people to the leaders, not from the leaders to the people.

For which it stands One Nation - - One Nation--meaning, so blessed by God.

Indivisible - - Incapable of being divided.

With Liberty - - Which is Freedom; the right of power to live one's own life, without threats, fear, or some sort of retaliation.

And Justice - - The principle, or qualities, of dealing fairly with others.

For All - - For All--which means, boys and girls, it's as much your country as it is mine.

And now, boys and girls, let me hear you recite the Pledge of Allegiance:

I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic, for which it stands; one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Since I was a small boy, two states have been added to our country,
and two words have been added to the Pledge of Allegiance: Under God.
Wouldn't it be a pity if someone said that is a prayer, and that would be eliminated from schools, too?

[by Red Skelton]

[Eric in the Ozarks]

Local radio played this piece this morning and will play it every hour.
Pity the IRS and the WH won’t hear it...

[left that other site]

Fallon Field????

Did you go to the Longfellow School?

It’s housing for the Elderly now...as well as Girls Latin and Roslindale High (All of them my Alma Maters at one point or another).

And yes. We Celebrated Flag Day!

[oh8eleven]

Today Is Flag Day
Today is also ...

Happy birthday from the Marine Corps.

[TabithaBliss]

For the record, you will never find a left wing forum with a post like this. Thanks for the reminder! :)

[StonyBurk]

D,—and some months later—on June 25,1969 I enlisted in the United States Army,where we trained to oppose All enemy foreign or domestic for the next 7 yrs. 7 months and a wake up.At Ft.Campbell we were given copy of the US Navy pamphlet titled Our Flag:—with a picture of US Marines in dress uniform honoring Our Flag. (We were responsible for everything within those pages —except that material specific to that other branch of our Military service.[one of the few items I have kept since]but Red Skelton’s tribute was rebroadcast many times while I served-and I still enjoy hearing him for he was a Patriot. Kinda like John Wayne’s America:why I love her album.

[Northern Yankee]

My flags are flying!

Had to get a new American flag to replace my old one, which had become torn and tattered. I will drop it off in front of the VFW mailbox for old flags.

Happy Flag Day!

[NEMDF]

Thank you for the Flag Day thread. We fly the U S Flag every day.

[FamiliarFace]

Happy 236th Birthday, Stars and Stripes!

For an interactive graphic on how the flag has changed over the years, click on the link.
http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/news/nation/Dynamic-US-flag-200-years-of-change.htm

[FamiliarFace]

I love Red Skelton. He was a great man, who could actually make people laugh, and didn’t have to resort to potty humor or insults to do it.

[Seattle Conservative]

Thanks for the thread!

Happy Flag Day everyone!

Nice picture on bing.com with some history, etc. via links in the boxes on the flag:
http://www.bing.com/

[knarf]

Yes .. Longfellow.

Walked from Weld SAt down Walter to school and back every day.

[left that other site]

My Best Friend grew up on Congreve!

Do you remember the Revolutionary War Era Graveyard in the Arboretum?

[knarf]

Congreve .. hadn’t heard that word in ...
about a century.
I grew up across the street from the Ahbs.

[left that other site]

The AHHBS!
hahahahahaha

The Ahhbs is perhaps the only thing I miss about Boston, especially at Lilac Time.

[Windflier]

[knarf]

The ahhbs was ouh playland for pretty much 8 or 9 yeahs while growing up.

When we wehe small, it was a place to play ahmy and stuff.

Latah on it was whehe we leahned to make soap box racahs and play with baby carriage convehtable tops an' stuff.

Even LATAH, the Ahhbs was the place we took the gihls to neck .. (The Chahles in Dedham was foh the sub races)

The Ahhbs ... sigghhh

[left that other site]

And of course, sled coasting down Petah’s Hill!

One day, I was waiting for the bus to pick me up for school on Belgrade ave. The bus was late, and when it did arrive, there were strange little holes in the door.

Turns out that the famous gangstah, Punchy Mclaughlin, was rubbed out in a drive=by up one the Chahles in Dedham that very morning, and the bus got a few bullet holes in the door.

[knarf]

Thehe's no hill on the planet that can compahe to Petahs !!!

Kids don't know coastin' these days.