Date: Mon, 26 May 2008 13:22:28 -0700
Reply-To: Anthony Egeln <regnsuzanne@YAHOO.COM>
Sender: Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From: Anthony Egeln <regnsuzanne@YAHOO.COM>
Subject: Re: Flowers for stones - LVC
In-Reply-To: <9f4608e90805261142u6e13d2fakf7ddee906c8f128d@mail.gmail.com>
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GREAT idea, Al,
I'm retired naval air, but this is not my day. I'm still fortunate enough to be walking God's green earth. I've always thought of Memorial Day in terms of those who perished in combat, or perhaps also those who died during dangerous military operations in peacetime, i.e. jet flown into the ocean on a cold catapult shot.
As we drive our beloved vanagons to our favorite holiday activity (required vanagon content), I hope everyone will take the time to say a prayer, or at least carry a thought of appreciation, for all those people who perished in the service of their country, and also for those still in harm's way around the globe.
Cheers, Anthony
'89 Syncro GL (Hidalgo)
--- On Mon, 5/26/08, Al Knoll <anasasi@GMAIL.COM> wrote:
From: Al Knoll <anasasi@GMAIL.COM>
Subject: Flowers for stones
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Date: Monday, May 26, 2008, 2:42 PM
Here's something that might make your Memorial Day a little more memorable.
Buy a dozen or so red carnations. Get that old 6 inch screwdriver
out of the toolbox. Fire up that 20 year old Vanagon and drive to
your nearest National Cemetary. You can find the locations on the
web. If you have never visited a National Cemetery before, it will
likely be a humbling, emotional experience so you should be prepared.
Make it a family event if you like, tell the kids or the grandkids
that you're taking the vanagon to a special place before the usual
family festivities. Tell them that they are the flower children, and
you will be looking for special stones.
At the cemetary will find row on row of solemn white stones. Each
will have the name of the veteran or veteran's family member on it.
You are looking for the special stones, those whose inscriptions
indicate that the veteran was killed in combat. At most cemetaries
each grave will have a small flag and many of these fallen combat
soldiers will have flowers at their graves. Pass reverently by those
graves, you are looking for a combat veteran whose grave has no
flowers. At each of these you can use the screwdriver to make a
small hole in the grass and place one of those hardy carnations in
the the sod. Think for a moment about this particular fallen soldier
and remind yourself that you, a stranger, remembered them on this
memorial day. You will run out of flowers before you run out of
stones.
Before you leave, explain to your family what these veterans did and
why the freedoms you enjoy today were paid for by the strangers
beneath the stones.
Should anyone ask, " Where have all your flowers gone?" you can reply
"gone to the graveyard every one".