Memorial Day

QUOTE.....

As I came out of the supermarket that sunny day, pushing my
cart of groceries towards my car, I saw an old man with the
hood of his car up and a lady sitting inside the car, with the
door open. The old man was looking at the engine. I put my
groceries away in my car, and continued to watch the old
gentleman from about twenty five feet away.
I saw a young man in his early twenties with a grocery bag in
his arm walking towards the old man. The old gentleman saw
him coming too, and took a few steps towards him.
I saw the old gentleman point to his open hood and say something.
The young man put his grocery bag into what looked like a brand
new Cadillac Escalade. He then turned back to the old man. I
heard him yell at the old gentleman saying: 'You shouldn't even
be allowed to drive a car at your age.' And then with a wave of his
hand, he got in his car and peeled rubber out of the parking lot.
I saw the old gentleman pull out his handkerchief, and mop his brow
as he went back to his car and again looked at the engine. He then went to his wife and spoke with her; he appeared to tell her it would be okay. I had seen enough, and I approached the old man. He saw me coming and stood straight, and as I got near him I said, 'Looks like you're having a problem.'
He smiled sheepishly, and quietly nodded his head. I looked under
the hood myself, and knew that whatever the problem was, it was
beyond me. Looking around, I saw a gas station up the road, and
I told the old man that I would be right back. I drove to the station
and went inside. I saw three attendants working on cars. I approached
one of them, and related the problem the old man had with his car.
I offered to pay them if they could follow me back down and help him.
The old man had pushed the heavy car under the shade of a tree and
appeared to be comforting his wife. When he saw us he straightened
up and thanked me for my help. As the mechanics diagnosed the
problem (overheated engine), I spoke with the old gentleman.
When I shook hands with him earlier, he had noticed my Marine
Corps ring and had commented about it, telling me that he had been
a Marine too. I nodded and asked the usual question, 'What outfit
did you serve with?'
He said that he served with the first Marine Division at Guadalcanal ,
Pelieliu, and Okinawa . He had hit three of the worst ones, and retired from the Corps after the war was over. As we talked we heard the car
engine come on and saw the mechanics lower the hood. They came
over to us as the old man reached for his wallet, but was stopped by
me. I told him I would just put the bill on my AAA card.
He still reached for the wallet and handed me a card that I assumed
had his name and address on it, and I stuck it in my pocket. We all
shook hands all around again, and I said my goodbye's to his wife.
I then told the two mechanics that I would follow them back up to the
station. Once at the station, I told them that they had interrupted
their own jobs to come along with me and help the old man. I said I
wanted to pay for the help, but they refused to charge me. One of them pulled out a card from his pocket, looking exactly like the card the old man had given to me. Both of the men told me then that they were Marine Corps Reserves. Once again we shook hands all around and as I was leaving, one of them told me I should look at the card the old man had given to me. I said I would and drove off.
For some reason I had gone about two blocks, when I pulled over and
took the card out of my pocket and looked at it for a long, long time.
The name of the old gentleman was on the card in golden leaf and
under his name was written: 'Congressional Medal of Honor Society.'
I sat there motionless, looking at the card and reading it over and over.
I looked up from the card and smiled to no one but myself and marveled
that on this day, four Marines had all come together because one of us
needed help. He was an old man all right, but it felt good to have stood
next to greatness and courage, and an honor to have been in his presence.
Remember, as we approach another Memorial Day, OLD men like
him gave you, and all of us, FREEDOM for America.
Thanks to those who served and still serve, and to all of those who
supported them, and who continue to support them.


America is not at war. The U.S. Military is at war. America is at the
Mall.

UNQUOTE.
 
Soldier who wrote his own obituary.  Captain John Alexander Hottell, III    Killed Vietnam 7-7-1970



Major John Alexander Hottell III,  earned two Silver Stars, one as commander of Company B, First Battalion, Eighth Cavalry, First Cavalry Division (Airmobile).  He later became the aide to Major General George W. Casey, the First Cavalry Division Commanding General. Both were killed in a helicopter crash on July 7, 1970.

While serving as the First Cavalry Division Captain Hottell wrote the following:

"In the heat of battle one hardly has time to stop and think about how well things might be going. In a struggle for survival, valuations are reduced to a simple standard: good is alive; bad is dead or wounded. Then, too, nearly everyone was simply too busy and too involved to allow the luxury of such reflection. The only thing that was really clear was that there was a hell of a fight going on. To the trooper who has lost a buddy, no amount of figures will be able to make it appear that the battle was a success."


After a firefight along the Dong Nai River, Captain Hottell wrote this letter to his wife, a year before he was killed:

"I am writing my own obituary for several reasons, and I hope none of them are too trite. First, I would like to spare my friends, who may happen to read this, the usual clich?s about being a good soldier. They were all kind enough to me, and I not enough to them. Second, I would not want to be a party to perpetuation of an image that is harmful and inaccurate: "glory" is the most meaningless of concepts, and I feel that in some cases it is doubly damaging. And third, I am quite simply the last authority on my own death.

I loved the Army: it reared me, it nurtured me, and it gave me the most satisfying years of my life. Thanks to it I have lived an entire lifetime in 26 years. It is only fitting that I should die in its service. We all have but one death to spend, and insofar as it can have any meaning, it finds it in the service of comrades in arms.

And yet, I deny that I died FOR anything - not my country, not my Army, not my fellow man, none of these things. I LIVED for these things, and the manner in which I chose to do it involved the very real chance that I would die in the execution of my duties. I knew this, and accepted it, but my love for West Point and the Army was great enough -- and the promise that I would some day be able to serve all the ideals that meant anything to me through it was great enough - for me to accept this possibility as a part of a price which must be paid for all things of great value. If there is nothing worth dying for - in this sense - there is nothing worth living for.

The Army is my life, it is such a part of what I was that what happened is the logical outcome of the life I loved. I never knew what it is to fail, I never knew what it is to be too old or too tired to do anything. I lived a full life in the Army, and it has exacted the price. It is only just."



 
A big Thank You to all the Boy & Girl Scouts as well as the others who placed an American Flag in front of each & every headstone in the Long Island National Cemetery to remain in place until June 1.......Continued RIP to Raymond & all the others
 
Once again this important weekend is upon us ......This weekend aside from the other activities please take time out to remember what Memorial Day actually is & do not forget those in Uniform here & abroad & pray that they will come home safely & not be included in the list of those being Memorialized who have gone to a higher level.......also take the time to explain the meaning to a young person...... http://www.usmemorialday.org/backgrnd.html  .......... please start back on page 1 & review the excellent posts in this thread....NEVER FORGET !
 
GOD BLESS AND THANK YOU TO ALL OUR VETS..FROM ALL OUR WARS
GOD BLESS PAT TILLMAN..R.I.P. #40 ARIZONA CARDINALS/ARMY RANGERS
 
There are so many stories to tell of the sacrifices made by our U.S. Veterans.  Each a story of their own.

One veteran, named Larry Palumbo, was one. He grew up in the Bronx and I believe the story is that he was a member of the 82nd Airborne Division fighting in the Viet Nam War. But before he left, he had been a member of a 50s/60s singing group called "The Earls". The lead singer of that group named Larry Chance has never forgotten his buddy who he lost. Whenever he puts on a show he tells the audience the story of his friend and he dedicates this song to him, and all veterans.  (In this video he also mentions his bout with cancer). But this is dedicated to his friend Larry.

  www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulH_od8Guc4
 
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