Lest We Forget

[lt632ret]

63 years ago this nation and its allies attemped and were sucessful in the greatest military endeaver in modern history. 13 years ago It was my pleasure to escort two friends of mine in my 69 Galaxy convertable. In a parade to celebrate the then 50th rememberance of that action. I want to take this moment to relate there stories on that day. One was Andy Cormack he was an elfen type of man with an impish smile, who was a Chief on one of the ships that day. He retired in 57 so that tells you how old he was on the 50th anniversary. He went in the Navy in the thirtys and used to tell of the officers who wore three pointed hats for ceremonies back then he would speak of seeing beheadings in China. He was in Pearl on Dec 7 and wished he had been able to get on land on June 6th since you see he felt he had a score to settle for some of those who also had been in Pearl on that day of Gook, nip, bastards day of infamy. He had to settle for the sight and sound of his ships guns pummeling the enemy entrenchments. Andys nickname was Chief many did not even know his real name. I could relate some of the stories he would tell or show the trench art shell casing adorned with the insignia and coins that were in the pockets of a German pilot he helped shoot down in Sicily. He played a ukelele and even into his seventys would ask females if they wanted to know his favorite Hawaian word? Then he would say comeonIwannalayya. Only he could get away with it. He was a pisser. The other guy was Frank ( curly) Lockwood the first motorcycle cop in Newburgh NY. He was my crossing guard when I was a kid. A big guy after the stint with the Newburgh police he went to work with me as an officer in the NYS DOCS. As a Newburgh cop one night off duty he had a couple too many drinks on the walk home ( in his neighborhood ) he decided that there were too many street lights on his street so he shot a few out with his revolver, which must have seemed like a good idea at the time. The next day the chief called him in and told him that someone had been shooting street lights out on his block and put him in charge of the investigation. The shootings stopped but they never got the guy. On June sixth 63 years ago Curly was an airborn ranger who was in one of the first wave landings in Normandy. While stepping through some dead germans if seems one was not dead enough and shot Curly from behind in the cheek of ( well you know where ). Curly dispatched him to the land of perpetual snitzel and kraut in the sky with his ( AMERICAN MADE ) bayonette. Curly was so embarrassed that he bandaged it himself. Oh yeah and kept fighting. He always had to be drunk to tell the story he was pissed at that german till he died a few years ago. Seems he eventually died from another pain in the ass COLON CANCER. They are all gone now the convertable, and both these guys . Not many of this breed left they are dropping like flies. Still a few of us still remember them with a bottle of Ballantine or Rhiengold beer in there hands there rich voices and balls of steel. Yup boys and girls Lest We Forget. LT

[orvet]

I was going to tell the story of a friend of mine from the Greatest Generation who lied about his age to join the army. After his 18th birthday two men from the draft board came to this family farm and told his mother that John was in trouble and might go to jail because he hadn't reported for the draft.

His mother said, "Just a moment." She went in the house and got a letter from John with the return address of Furstenberg Obertaba, the Luftwaffe POW camp. She said, "He is here, please go get him and put him in jail."

John turned 18 in that POW camp. He is gone now too. There are many stores I could tell about John and stories that John told me. There aren't many remaining warriors left from the Greatest Generation.

Lest we forget..... these words reminded me of Kipling who said it better than I can.

To the Greatest Generation.

Recessional
by Rudyard Kipling

God of our fathers, known of old--
Lord of our far-flung battle line
Beneath whose awful hand we hold
Dominion over palm and pine--
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget - lest we forget!

The tumult and the shouting dies;
The captains and the kings depart:
Still stands Thine ancient sacrifice,
An humble and a contrite heart.
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget - lest we forget!

Far-called, our navies melt away;
On dune and headland sinks the fire:
Lo, all our pomp of yesterday
Is one with Nineveh and Tyre!
Judge of the Nations, spare us yet,
Lest we forget - lest we forget!

If, drunk with sight of power, we loose
Wild tongues that have not Thee in awe--
Such boasting as the Gentiles use
Or lesser breeds without the law--
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget - lest we forget!

For heathen heart that puts her trust
In reeking tube and iron shard--
All valiant dust that builds on dust,
And guarding, calls not Thee to guard--
For frantic boast and foolish word,
Thy mercy on Thy people, Lord!

[W5RWU]

May we never forget the sacrifice they gave!

[lt632ret]

I used to have a friend who would say plaguerism is the sincerest form of flattery. Yes Kipling said it well, first, and certainly better than I. Thankyou Dale I enjoyed reading that again. I always liked his line in Gunga Din. You may talk of gin and beer when your quartered safe back here. Easy to be a tough guy when not in harms way. Seems like we always have a new crop of heros to pay the freight for us guys at home. It is a debt only repayable in one manner, that coin, is simply to never forget them, and to learn from there sacrifices. Apparently only half that debt is ever even paid in at least token renumeration, sometimes we do remember, but apparently we have not learned from the sacrifices paid in the past and must sacrifice the pride of each generation in pursuit of the same lessons.

I am no Kipling but my publisher once compared my writing with Ernest Hemingway. OH wait a minute that was my drinking habits he compared with Hemingways.

Just one more quote for the nite "Where have all the flowers gone long line passing . When will they ever learn When will they ever learn. "

In conclusion Bless them all the long and the short and the tall. Those who gave some and those who gave all. For any of you who stop over tonite I am setting up the bar, but its Curly, Chief, and all the rest who footed the Bill. LT

[orvet]

LT,
For those who have served, such as you, me and many many others here, we know there are times when the general public does not appreciate the sacrifices we have made. I think that is true of the WWII veterans as well. I know it was true for the World War I veterans. It was in the time of WWI that Kipling wrote Tommy.

It seems that each generation has it "Thin red line of heroes..." who are willing to step up to the plate and go to war. Many times they were not appreciated until later, if ever.
But these, visionaries, these men & women with backbones of steel, are willing to look the "elephant" in the face and stare it down, regardless of whether the people at home value their sacrifice, regardless of how they are treated.

To those of you who served in WWII, you have my sincere, heartfelt "Thank You." Had you not made the sacrifices you and your comrades in arms made, we would all live in a much different world, if we were alive at all.

To everyone else who served, again, "Thank You." Even if it seems that you were not appreciated, or if your recognition was decades late in coming, (as in the case of the Korean War veterans).

The hearts of the brave never waver from the course, no matter who they are treated at home. I find the closing stanza of Kipling's "Tommy" to be particularly poignant.

"For it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Chuck him out, the brute!"
But it's "Saviour of 'is country," when the guns begin to shoot;
An' it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' anything you please;
But Tommy ain't a bloomin' fool - you bet that Tommy sees!"

A toast to the brave men & women who serve and give us our freedom, even when it is not the "Politically Correct" thing to do.

Semper Fi,
Dale

[Mossdancer]

Hi Folks:
Im happy to see this thread still active. Just returned from A memorial service aboard the USS Midway Museum in San Diego. I shed a few tears, tipped a couple of beers. We all said our good byes. They are all in their personal places of rest now. A long time coming. Such a short send off for a great bunch of guys. I included the statue, I think it ties in with LT's original post. It made the trip just that much better. I didn't crop the lady with camera out, I wanted to show the size reference.
wbat.

[Gunsmoke47]

Amen. To those that have, that do, and that always will, Thank You

[Mossdancer]

Hi;
LT I hope you don't mind me bringing this forward again but I just ran across this and figured this would be a good place to post it.
moss

A veteran -

Whether active duty, retired, national guard or reserve - is someone who, at one point
In his life, wrote a blank check made payable to "The United States of America", for an
Amount of "up to and including my life."

That is Honor, and there are way too many people in this country who no longer understand it.

-- Author Unknown

[Forensic Jim]

Remembering our fallen heroes has a special meaning to me. I don't have any war stories. Served as an Air Force Medic, from 1971-1975. Part of that time on a Crypto Base in the middle of the Mediteranean, and two years at a V.A. Regional Hospital in Minot, N.Dak. taking care of disabled servicemen from Nam. The small town I grew up in Flat Rock, Mi., has a Vietnam Memorial with roughly 14 names on it. I grew up with and knew 10 of the boys personally, and still after all these years wonder where they would be today had they come back.