Monday, May 19, 2014

Memorial Day Flag

Memorial Day Flag
Memorial Day will soon be here.

It is a federal holiday where men and women who died serving in the Armed Forces are remembered. The holiday is celebrated on the final Monday of May.

In America's first 100 years of existence, over 683,000 Americans lost their lives. The Civil War with 623,026 of that total represents over 90 percent of the total. In the next 100 years, another 626,000 Americans died through two World Wars and multiple regional conflicts, including Iraq and the ongoing conflict in Afghanistan.

source. militaryfactory.com 


And why do we fight?  Ask Thomas Jefferson.

 If you will not fight for the right when you can easily win without bloodshed; if you will not fight when your victory will be sure and not too costly; you may come to the moment when you will have to fight with all the odds against you and only a small chance of survival. There may even be a worse case: you may have to fight when there is no hope of victory, because it is better to perish than to live as slaves.

The old man's father fought in World War II and his grandfather fought in World War I. Others have fought going back to the Revolutionary War. It is the price we pay for freedom.

Sunday, May 11, 2014

No time for Facebook

Pole Cat Creek Bridge, Butler County, Kansas, built 1910


No time for Facebook

Friends,

I have no time
For Facebook
So,
If you don’t mind
Look me up
In a telephone book
If they still exist.

Better yet,
Come on by the house
I am sitting on the porch
Sharing a thought with Horace
From a book I bought
Long ago

He says,

Carpe Diem

Be wise,
Sip the wine
Its mighty fine
Enjoy!
Since life is brief,

Of the past,
It’s gone
Good riddance

Of the future,
Ask not - we cannot know
What the gods are thinking
As we’re drinking

Prune back those far-reaching hopes
For even as we speak,
Time has passed
Nothing lasts

So pluck the day,
It’s all you’ve got
Forget about tomorrow!

Horace, Odes 1.11