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. With hair cut square and eyes alert, 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 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, and of unmarked graves in Arlington, NO FREEDOM ISNT FREE! Happy Independence Day! What a price we have paid!
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This has been a bittersweet time for me since my first deployment on Nimitz, when I lost a good friend of mine to an "aviation mishap." At first, I didn't understand it. As time went by, it slowly dawned on me why I feel the way I do. Watching this Great Nation slide down to where we are today has been hard for me to bea witness to. It hasn't gotten any easier over the years, but I've learned to accept it and continue moving forward, which is what all of my Brothers and Sisters who are no longer with us would've wanted. It still stings though.
Thank you. Your post is beautiful. 3 of my sons have been in military, 1 still in is now a Captain, 1 died while active duty. You all sacrifice so much. Civilians don't really understand commitment, dedication, honor and sacrifice of service men and women. In closing, it does sting, but more and more, it seems obvious it's the propaganda and news. More and more 'everyday life' people are waking up, watching out, helping and appreciating each other.
Thank you and my heartfelt condolences for your Gold Star.
o7 😢🇺🇲
Same to you, and thank you for that wonderful post! We SHOULD tear up at the thought of those who sacrificed themselves for us. And we must not let their gift to us perish!
Our true heroes!
Heres the sad thing. When you actually talk to those who survived they ALL question if it was even worth. ALL of them eventually fall under the belief that the US views them as nothing more than canon fodder.
and Perry Willis both empathizes and shares their concern: https://wartruth.org/
https://zeroaggressionproject.org/perry-willis/which-war-is-most-important/
https://youtu.be/-gwarSSWnOI
Glory be to the fallen.
Very well said.
Perfect time for Johnny Cash’s Ragged Old Flag song.
Always bring tears. Find it and listen if you never have. It’s worth the time.
AMEN!