Sunday, May 25, 2008

Memorial Day

FREEDOM IS NOT FREE
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 is not Free.
I heard the sound of Taps one night,
When everything was still;
I listened to the bugler play,
And felt a sudden chill;
I wondered just how many times
That Taps had meant "Amen"
When a flag had draped a coffin
Of a brother or a friend;
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,
Of unmarked graves in Arlington.
No. Freedom is not Free!
©Copyright 1981 by Kelly Strong

To all those who have served this country or to those who have a loved one who has served.....THANK YOU

Rhondi xo


13 comments:

  1. Happy Memorial Day Rhondi, thank you for visiting my blog :)

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  2. We are so incredibly blessed to live in this country.

    Great post.

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  3. Thank you for this beautiful tribute! For all those who have gone before and those who are there now, I say Amen! and God bless you!

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  4. Oh that was beautiful. Thanks for posting that. We often forget all those who have died so we may live in freedom. God bless each and everyone of them and all those who will be laying down their lifes in the future for us.

    Joanne

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  5. What a beautiful picture and poem. Wow, the picture of the soldier at the bottom really brings it all home. He looks so burdened with all he has to carry and with what he has to do, yet there he is out there protecting this country. I have a tribute to soldiers on my blog today too.

    Kady

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  6. What a wonderful reminder of all our fallen heroes. We must never forget to be grateful for their sacrifice and for those who still serve in the cause of freedom.

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  7. I believe it is wonderful that we set aside this day to honor the proud protectors of our country.

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  8. Hi Rhondi!
    Great post! Have a good holiday!
    Hugs, Sherry

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  9. Rhondi, hope you have a wonderful holiday. I am so far behind in trying to say hello to my friends.

    xo,
    Rhoda

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  10. What a beautiful poem and sentiment. We are so blessed to live in America and have this day to honor our service men and women. Most of all, those who have given their life for our freedom.

    Blessings, Jeanne

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  11. Great to have you stop by today, Rhondi, and so glad Kim has introduced us. Your poem, sentiments, and photo are deeply touching, and so right on! Thanks for getting it down so well for all of us. Our freedom has come at great cost to others, that is for sure!

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  12. This was a good reminder for all of us Rhondi. We are so lucky to live where we do and to enjoy the freedoms that have been won by those who went before and those that continue to volunteer. My brother-in-law is with the forces in Afghanistan and we worry about him every day - and all of the young people like him over there.

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  13. Most generations of my family have or are serving in the military. We have my niece's DH in Iraq right now and pray for his safety.

    Hope you had a wonderful Memorial Day weekend!

    Hugs ~
    Heidi

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Hi
Thanks so very much for taking the time to leave a comment. I always read every one. I am glad you stopped by for a visit. Hope you'll come again!
Rhondi