Happy Veteran's Day!

Thank you to all our Veterans for keeping us, our freedoms, and liberties all safe! May God richly bless you all, and your families!  --LKR

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!!!!!!

--Kelly Strong, 1981

Written as a tribute to his dad who served two terms in Vietnam and is a career Marine 

A Word From One of Or Founding Fathers

Happy Thanksgiving! A word from one of our founding fathers:

WHEREAS it is the duty of all nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey His will, to be grateful for His benefits, and humbly to implore His protection and favor; and Whereas both Houses of Congress have, by their joint committee, requested me "to recommend to the people of the United States a DAY OF PUBLIC THANKSGIVING and PRAYER, to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many and signal favors of Almighty God, especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness:"

NOW THEREFORE, I do recommend and assign THURSDAY, the TWENTY-SIXTH DAY of NOVEMBER next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be; that we may then all unite in rendering unto Him our sincere and humble thanks for His kind care and protection of the people of this country previous to their becoming a nation; for the signal and manifold mercies and the favorable interpositions of His providence in the course and conclusion of the late war; for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty which we have since enjoyed; for the peaceable and rational manner in which we have been enable to establish Constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national one now lately instituted;- for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed, and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge;- and, in general, for all the great and various favors which He has been pleased to confer upon us.

And also, that we may then unite in most humbly offering our prayers and supplications to the great Lord and Ruler of Nations and beseech Him to pardon our national and other transgressions; - to enable us all, whether in public or private stations, to perform our several and relative duties properly and punctually; to render our National Government a blessing to all the people by constantly being a Government of wise, just, and constitutional laws, discreetly and faithfully executed and obeyed; to protect and guide all sovereigns and nations (especially such as have shown kindness unto us); and to bless them with good governments, peace, and concord; to promote the knowledge and practice of true religion and virtue, and the increase of science among them and us; and, generally to grant unto all mankind such a degree of temporal prosperity as he alone knows to be best.

GIVEN under my hand, at the city of New York, the third day of October, in the year of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and eighty-nine.

--George Washington, Thanksgiving Proclamation, 1789

Happy Veteran's Day!!!

Thanks to all who have served, are serving, and will serve our great country, protecting our freedoms and liberties, and thanks to your families as well! Your sacrifices have not gone unnoticed!!!

"... in our hearts you will always be young, full of the love that is youth, love of life, love of joy, love of country - you fought for your country and for its safety and for the freedom of others with strength and courage. We love you for it. We honor you. And we have faith that, as He does all His sacred children, the Lord will bless you and keep you, the Lord will make His face to shine upon you and give you peace, now and forevermore."

President Ronald Reagan

1988 Veteran's Day address

The Pledge Of Allegiance

Let us never forget this message Red Skelton is still reminding us. --LKR

Memorial Poppy

This beautiful poem was written in 1915 by Major John McCrae who served in the Canadian Army as a surgeon. It is a tribute to all who sacrificed their lives in war for peace.

In Flanders Fields

In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders fields.

A woman named Moina Belle Michael later replied with her own poem, We Shall Keep the Faith. Moina was also responsible for the conception of the Memorial Poppy. Through her hard work and diligence, red poppies became the national emblem of remembrance for those who had not returned home from war.

We Shall Keep the Faith

We cherish too, the Poppy red

That grows on fields where valor led,

It seems to signal to the skies

That blood of heroes never dies.

Thanks to all of our veterans for serving our country, enabling liberty and freedom for all!

--LKR

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This is the newest circle located at the south side of Eau Claire. Click to enlarge the picture, and you will see little flags placed here for Memorial Day.

(The tire tracks you see are evidence of drunk drivers who either tried to drive over the circle or didn't see the circle--they get stuck and have to call for help. Honestly.)

Sunday's Song

My Country 'Tis of Thee

My country 'tis of Thee,
Sweet land of liberty,
Of thee I sing.
Land where my fathers died!
Land of the Pilgrim's pride!
From every mountain side,
Let freedom ring!

My native country, Thee,
Land of the noble free,
Thy name I love.
I love thy rocks and rills,
Thy woods and templed hills;
My heart with rapture fills
Like that above.

Let music swell the breeze,
And ring from all the trees
Sweet freedom's song.
Let mortal tongues awake;
Let all that breathe partake;
Let rocks their silence break,
The sound prolong.

Our father's God to, Thee,
Author of liberty,
To Thee we sing.
Long may our land be bright
With freedom's holy light;
Protect us by Thy might,
Great God, our King!
--Samuel Francis Smith