Saturday, June 6, 2009

D Day....we should all remember

Did you find your pal, sir, in that huge cemetery overlooking the ocean at Normandy? Had you fought with him but he lost the fight and you didn't? Or maybe he was your brother and you finally made it to his grave so many miles from home, all these years later, and what you really want to do is not just touch the top of the cross like you did but kneel on the grass and finally cry for that older brother who taught you how to throw a football and promised he'd come back and broke your Mom's heart when she got the telegram? If you fought together, did you rub your fingers across his name when you found his grave and think about the last cigarette you guys had, or the last beer, maybe in London? Do you remember his smile and how he kept promising you that you guys would get out of there alive and meet in 50 years to reminisce about it and how you hoped he was right? Do you remember how he couldn't wait to get back to his home town and marry his high school sweetheart? Did you have kids and remember that he never did, and do you think of him every time one of your children has a birthday? Do you wonder if his sweetheart's thinking about him today even though she must have gone on to marry someone else?

I salute you, sir. And I'm glad you made it. And I'm so grateful to your friend...or your brother, if that's the case. God bless his soul resting in peace all these years, God bless you, and God bless this great country you both fought for.

Mr and Mrs Z

21 comments:

The WordSmith from Nantucket said...

Ever grateful to those who fought that day.

Bryan said...

"And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more" (Isa 2:4.)

What a day that shall be when men will not need to learn war any more.

"Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus" (Rev 22:20.)

FrogBurger said...

Very very very grateful.

Thomas Lawrence said...

Lump in throat. Well done.

elmers brother said...

It's so good that we remember this.

Thanks Z.

David Wyatt said...

Tremendous, Z. Thank you so much for this touching tribute.

Jan said...

Z..so beautiful.

I won't forget, and I am grateful for what they achieved at such a great cost.

Trekkie4Ever said...

I am so glad that many blogs are honoring this historical day. Many precious lives were given and we must never forget their sacrifices.

Always On Watch said...

Get ready to puke!

Gordon Brown of the UK referred today to Omaha Beach as "Obama Beach."

Z said...

'OBAMA BEACH'..is NOTHING SACRED, Always??

That is HILARIOUS. Mr. Z just said "WHAT A DOPE"

indeed.

And yes, Lefties, WE KNOW it's a slip of the tongue, lighten UP.
Just thought I'd beat you to your silly outrage.

Terri@SteelMagnolia said...

Z... :-)

Sure.. you can use whatever I said on DD2's blog re: medical care and illegals.

It's sooo nice to meet you too!

I tried to find and e~mail so I could e~mail ya... but none to be found.

We need to stick together on this.

What was so funny (or rather, irritating)

when we testified before the NV legislators twice...

they simply couldn't believe what I was saying about illegals....
they thought I was mistaken...

right....

anyway..
GOD BLESS OUR WONDERFUL MILITARY!

Thanks for writing me.
Terri

PS, here I am on CNN special re: broken healthcare

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9m6gZxK0J4k

I come on at the 5:24 mark, my friend is up first, be sure to watch and have tissue.

Anonymous said...

Beautifully said, Z.

God bless them all. It was a day of sacrifice and immeasurable heroism.

I hope our youth today can appreciate their sacrifice. They inherited a gift few are given in this world. The gift of freedom, which came at the highest cost.

Some of them pay that price today in foreign lands.

With love and gratitude, I thank all those who have kept us free.

Now, let's see if we can keep their trust.

Pris

Anonymous said...

It has been my great honor and privilege in the last few years to have known a small number of men who survived ''The Longest Day'' but WW2 in Western Europe and I'm in awe of what they did and the quiet pride they felt in what they had done and the humility they exhibited when they would always tell me that the real heros ''were the ones who never came back''. These men are gone now and more of this generation leaves us everyday. Still, until the end of time, what these men did when they ''were soldiers once and young'' will show humanitys better side and that of America. Bless them all. Johnnymac.

Anonymous said...

Hi J'Mac, well said.

It's good to see you here. Hope all has been well with you.

Pris

Anonymous said...

I noted at Hoosier Army Mom’s blog that during the D-Day observance today, a news reporter asked a veteran of the Omaha Beach landing, “What gave you young men the courage to face such a determined enemy?” The old man thought for a moment before he replied, paraphrasing of course.

“My generation suffered the effects of the Great Depression. But along with suffering came determination and self-reliance. The Army taught us how to take those attributes and apply them as a team. We did not have these modern day diversions. And besides, we understood that we didn’t have an option. There was a profound evil in the world; it was up to us to do something about it.”

Honestly, I would rather listen to these fine veterans talking about their experiences than watch a bunch of politicians, who accomplished nothing beyond pursuing self-interests, prattle on for more than an hour on something they know nothing about.

Anonymous said...

Z:

About Terri’s comment (above) … I watched the YouTube presentation … and I will say that when our politicians cannot or will not provide meaningful access to health care to our citizens, while at the same time fall over themselves providing it to illegal aliens, there is something horribly wrong in this country. I know there are people out there like Terri who require creative health care solutions, and yet politicians ignore these needs so that members of congress can pander to illegals for a sympathetic Hispanic vote.

Of the so-called 50 million Americans without health care, strip out 20 million illegals. Of the 30 million remaining, half opted not to participate in health care programs. Averaged across 50 states, then, we have about 300,000 people in each state who are legitimately in need of special access to health care. And this is entirely doable within our states; we do not require a national health service. These facts should lead a reasonable person to ask, “What are these idiot politicians smoking?”

But yeah, try to get anyone educated in American schools to understand that our politicians are snake oil salesmen.

Z said...

mustang, I'm on my way out the door, but I wanted to give all of you this to ponder: CNN was using that horrible story, and her friend's, to further NATIONALIZED MEDICINE.
There can be no doubt.

Would that they'd have carried the testimony Terri apparently gave the Nevada people that illegals were getting everything free.

Sanjay Gupta left that OUT. We need to work on all the truth coming out.

Bloviating Zeppelin said...

America: the LAST and BEST hope for the entire planet.

People denigrate this country to their own collective, national and global detriment. INCLUDING our so-called president.

BZ

Anonymous said...

America is not the ''last'' hope for humanity. It's the only hope. Johnnymac.

Z said...

it's always sad that my leftie trolls find it too difficult to comment on patriotic pieces.NEVER HAPPENS.

Anonymous said...

Theirs is a sacrifice we can only acknowledge and be grateful for.

Thanks Z.