Theodore's World: Thank You Veterans You Are Never Forgotten ~ Never

« Veterans Day Salute To Those Who Gave All | Main | Marine Staff Sgt. Matt Bateman Who Beat 70 Iraqi Roadside Bombs »

November 11, 2007

Thank You Veterans You Are Never Forgotten ~ Never





If you know a Veteran, someone in your family, friend of the family, neighbor, who served their country, take a brief moment of your day to thank them. Thank them for the sacrifice they made for the better good of their country. I am so very thankful for every service member in our military who has served our great nation .So, to the men and women who answered the call in both times of war and peace, I thank you. ---- Wild Thing



Our Veterans took a thousand towns and villages……
Snow fields and empty stretches of Ocean……..
The jungles hot and deep,
and fought the fight for FREEDOM,
and turned then into sacred places
with their courage in the face of unimaginable horror
.





Anzio


When they fought their way ashore at Normandy....
Dodged their bombers through a deadly maze of antiaircraft fire.......
Went weeks without sleep in a mad race to break the German Code...
They KNEW what was at stake.......
it was the United States of America.
Their children and grandchild and their homeland.......
it was about our FREEDOM



And away He went to war…….
Young, full of dreams and hope for a future...blue eyes shining bright.

He stepped on the bus that would carry him away from us.

We waved until we could see the bus no more and then
we waved once more...as if to insure all our love went with him.

We could not imagine our baby boy going off to
fight a war in a place we had never even heard of...

Days came and went. The letters were full of wonderful
memories of his childhood and telling me to be sure and
cook his favorite foods and think of him...He wrote about the
endless rain that kept them walking in soggy field of rice ...
and the heat that was relentless ... and of the people who
were so distrustful because of the Americans.

He also wrote of his pride in our country...
of believing in what he was doing.

And once he wrote a letter that ripped my heart into...he wrote

"Mom...there are times when I am in the foxholes and
I feel like I am not going to come out. I don't want you
to worry though, Mom because I believe I am going
to come home...deep inside of me. I am coming home, Mom."

Never before had I thought much about soldiers until
my son put on his uniform. And then I began to pray for them all...
and when I would see one my heart would fill with love for them.
I did not know all the horrors they saw or the pain they felt
but I knew they were laying down their very lives for the country we live in.

I knew there was no greater love.
Soon the calendar in our kitchen was filled with marks.

We were counting the days ...
and then the letters which had been coming stopped.

A couple of weeks after the letters had stopped and
my heart was growing so heavy...
it hurt to breathe. A mother knows. I gave him life.
He grew inside my body...and I knew. A part of my soul had died...
I knew before the two men knocked on our door that morning.
I did not hear much of their words...
all I knew was my baby boy was gone.
And I knew that my world would never be the same.

Many years have come and gone since that day in '69.
But whenever I pass a soldier on the street or see one on TV,
I stop and pray...

"Dear God...bless that young man...
protect him and let him know how grateful we are
for what he does. For what he is doing for this nation...
bless His life, dear God. Please keep him safe and
let him return home safe and sound..."

Today I laid a wreath and a flag on my son's grave.
I could hear his words still even after all these years...
"Mama, I am coming home."
And he did ... not the way I had prayed but my son is
home-in a place where there is no more death or sadness.
And He is home in his mother's heart...with every breath I breathe.

Each time I sing, "Our Country 'tis of Thee...Sweet Land of Liberty,"
I see my son, I see mothers and fathers who have lost their children...
I see wives who lost their husbands...
I see children who lost their Dads ...
and I see a flag waving in the wind over a land that is free.

And I know the cost of that freedom...
God bless our veterans ... each and everyday.

May they always know the price they paid is not forgotten ...
and the land they fought to save ...
may freedom always ring!




BALLAD OF THE CHOSIN
The nights were cold in the Korean soil.
But the night's been cold before.
And it's not so hard in your own back yard.
To be set for peace or war

But in history there's a chapter of a place called Valley Forge
Repeated one December on the Chosin Reservoir.

They had us all surrounded I could hear them scream and yell
My feelings at that moment No tongue could ever tell.

I saw the bursting mortar shells And the bullets around me flew
As all my strength had left me And all my courage too.

With the breaking of the morning Just before the dawn
I heard the sounding bugles And the big attack was on.

The cotton quilted uniforms Against our bullet spree
The screaming yelling banzai They called the human sea.

Baby faces bearded And chapped with hardenin' mud
Parkas that were dirty And stained with frozen blood.
Here a bunch of youngsters Who fought on 'til the end
In the battle of the Chosin Where boys were turned to men.
Twelve long miles of convoy Headed for the sea
Roadblocks at every turning Down through Koto-Ri.
The frost bite and the wounded With their dead and dying too
No matter what the objective be These boys were going through.

The Captain he informed us Perhaps he thought it right
That before we reach the river boys We're going to have to fight.

We're going out like Marines
In an organized withdraw
And no matter what the rumors say
It's no retreat at all.

We fought at least nine hours Before the strife was ore
And the like of the dead and wounded I've never seen before.

But the everlasting promise Kept along each bloody yard
No one leaves behind the wounded 'Cause there ain't no fight that hard.

The Chaplain collected dog tags In his hands were quite a few
There was Captain Smith's, McCloskies And Corporal Bryan's too.

And before we reached the river And fought our way back through
The Sergeant had the dog tags And he had the Chaplains too.

If I made you pause one moment And take a little time
Then I know it wasn't just in vain That I put these words to rhyme.

For there's just too many people Who take this all in stride
Who hear these tales of battles Then cast it all aside.

The nights were cold in the Korean soil But the night's been cold before
And it's not so hard in your own back yard To be set for peace or war

But in history there's a chapter of a place called Valley Forge
Repeated one December on the Chosin Reservoir.

Written by Frank Gross

The Ballad of Chosin was composed on December 29th 1950
and it is believed to be among the first ballads
to be composed on the war in Korea .




"To those warriors, who have passed on since and to those who gave their youth, their health and their peace of mind in the fight for freedom, particularly the freedom of speech. We sleep safe in our beds because rough men stand ready in the night to visit violence on those who would do us harm.” ~ Orwell






The Senrinels

You ancient, rusty relics- if you
could only tell
Your history and your legends, of
the battles and the hell.

You lie silent on those beaches,
where you formed a battle line,
Now decaying hulks of rusting steel
from a different place and time.

Ghostly figures man your turrets,
though the surf's the only sound.
Aye, your guns are long since si-
lenced, while the ground swells
rage and pound.

I close my eyes and visualize those
beachheads long ago,
When young Marines were fighting
through that surf and undertow

All too many never made it and, like
you, they shall remain
Silent sentinels at your turrets, while
the hourglass drops its grain.

Time, to you , is unimportant; You're
a monument to the past,,,
But your presence is a waning, if
again the die is cast.
Let no tyrant, King or ruler ever tam-
per with our land,
Lest you start your rusty engines,
and your gunners rise and stand.

May you never be forgotten; May the
old vets spread your fame,
For your colors still fly boldly, and
Old Glory still her name.

Carl Dearborn

Posted by Wild Thing at November 11, 2007 12:55 AM


Comments

"Nevertheless, to the persecution and tyranny of his cruel ministry we will not submit - appealing to Heaven for the justice of our cause, we determine to die or be free... "
- Joseph Warren, 26 April 1775, The Battle of Lexington & Concord! JOHN 15:13 reads no greater love than a man who lays down his life for a friend...

Posted by: darthcrUSAderworldtour07 at November 11, 2007 05:34 AM


Veterans Day is much much more than a shopping event. It is a day to remember that our daily freedoms were bought with blood and sacrifice. Sadly, there will be more sacrifice in the future, maybe even today.

To my comrades and buddies who covered my flanks, whether you pulled a trigger or delivered the beans, even if I did not know you personally, Thank You.

Posted by: TomR at November 11, 2007 08:15 AM


Excellent tributes to our Vets Chrissie!!
(I have a friend who was in Nam.)

God Bless our Troops!
You guys Rock!
Thank you all who have served and serve!!
HAPPY VETERANS DAY!

Posted by: patrickdaniel at November 11, 2007 08:20 AM


Thank you all for the wondrous things you've done for us. For those who have passed and those in service now, God Bless thee and keep thee.
A special thank you to my family who served so bravely--Swago Bill, Zephaniah, Joseph W, Austin, Glen, Jim, Red, Ralph, Harry B, Daddy, Billy, Jeff, David, Beth, Jeffrey, Marty, JoAnna and Dustin. You were there when we needed you and you didn't have to. You took the pledge and followed your hearts. Thank you all so much from the bottom of my heart. I love you all. Our America would be so much different if you hadn't stepped forward and made a stand against tyranny and terrorism.

Posted by: Lynn at November 11, 2007 10:15 AM


Words can't describe how much we owe our veterans, without them some of us wouldn't be here to celebrate this humble anniversary. God bless each and every one of you. Thank you so much.

Posted by: Jack at November 11, 2007 12:20 PM


From one Veteran to another, thank you. Great post!

Posted by: Robocop at November 11, 2007 04:10 PM


I have laughed, cried, cussed and fussed, been called names from those who thought they must.

I lived through times some say it's best forgotten.

I have seen the best who are now at rest, I'm surprised just how far I've
gotten, my nam friends will never be forgotten.

Those were the days of old,when we were young and bold,some didn't live to grow old their bodies lay in the ground dead and cold

We had self esteem, we were known as US Marines.

We loved God, Country, and the Corps but our government sold us out like a two dollar whore.


Some say it was all in vain others say we were insane, we walk with pride

we didn't run and hide and we knew Jane Fonda was on the other side.

One thing is a sure bet her tratior ass wasn't there during Tet.

Posted by: Mark at November 11, 2007 05:39 PM


Mark.... Vietnam would have been over with in months if the pimps, prostitutes and scum in Washington D.C hadn't tied your hands with limited rules of engagement and NON-ENGAGEMENT! God knows this and we know this. GOD BLESS and thanks to the patriots in this blog, and to Bob Hope and WT... you have not been dishonored nor forgotten!

Posted by: darthcrUSAderworldtour07 at November 11, 2007 11:03 PM


Darth thank you for the quote and the verse.

Posted by: Wild Thing at November 12, 2007 12:35 AM


Tom it sure is a whole lot more then a sale and shopping day. I wish they didn't have that on Veterans Day. They could do it the day after and say it is for the Veterans or something.

Posted by: Wild Thing at November 12, 2007 12:38 AM


Patrick thank you for sharing and please tell your friend thank you.

Thank you too Patrick.

Posted by: Wild Thing at November 12, 2007 12:41 AM


Lynn that is wonderful thank you.

Posted by: Wild Thing at November 12, 2007 12:42 AM


Jack , I feel like that so much, humbled by our Veterans and all they have done. Thank you Jack.

Posted by: Wild Thing at November 12, 2007 12:45 AM


Robocop thank you so much.

Posted by: Wild Thing at November 12, 2007 12:46 AM


Mark that is so awesome what you wrote. With tears I thank you.

Posted by: Wild Thing at November 12, 2007 12:48 AM