A Memorial Day Tribute To Our Troops

The time you won your town the race
We chaired you through the market-place;
Man and boy stood cheering by,
And home we brought you shoulder-high.

To-day, the road all runners come,
Shoulder-high we bring you home,
And set you at your threshold down,
Townsman of a stiller town.

A stiller town indeed. I borrow the above words of A E Houseman not to eulogize an athlete who has died before his time, but rather to honor the sons and daughters, fathers and mothers of our military who have sacrificed their lives in the cause of freedom for this country and the world.

As we go about our daily lives during this Memorial Day weekend, attending parades and fireworks displays, or just enjoying an extra day off with our families, let us take a few moments to reflect on the freedoms we so enjoy.

For, although our founding fathers expressed the belief that our freedoms are inalienable rights, granted us from God, those freedoms have been protected, and guaranteed by the blood of our military throughout our history. The following piece has circulated on the internet for some time. It is particularly poignant in this time of war.

It is the soldier, not the reporter, who has given us the freedom of the press.It is the soldier, not the poet, who has given us the freedom of speech.It is the soldier, not the campus organizer, who gives us the freedom to demonstrate.

It is the soldier who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag, and whose coffin is draped by the flag, who allows the protester to burn the flag."—Father Dennis Edward O'Brien, Sergeant, US Marine Corps

Writer much more talented than I have pointed out that Freedom is not, in fact, free. Freedom, in order to blossom upon an infertile soil, takes from time to time the shedding of blood. It is the blood of the US Military, on battlefields near and far that has planted the seeds of freedom and democracy that bloom from time to time.

This weekend, as we plant American flags on the graves of our fallen heroes, let us hope that those seeds already planted throughout the world will begin to germinate and spread, that future generations will find more to celebrate, and less to grieve, on this, our most noble of Holidays.

May God Bless the United States, and all of our Military, wherever they be…guarding freedom in this world.

David Hinz

Let me share with you these three inspirational webpages. Be sure to turn your speakers up:
God Bless America sung by Celine Dion
Liberty-An Anthem for a free World
If I Die Before You Wake sung by Dustin Evans