When the Soldiers Come Home

Photo Credit: "Burst of Joy" is a Pulitzer Prize-winning photograph by Associated Press photographer Slava "Sal" Veder, taken on March 17, 1973 at Travis Air Force Base in California

In Love Comes Home, my new Rosey Corner book, the story starts with the surrender of Japan and everybody celebrating the news that the war is over and the "boys are coming home." Then later in the book, there are homecoming scenes. That's why I asked readers who might have homecoming stories of their own, real ones and not fictional ones like mine in the book, to share those with me. A couple of weeks ago when I wrote about the passing of my husband's Aunt Annie, I included a coming home story about when her husband made it home from World War II. I actually used hints of her story in one of the homecoming scenes in Love Comes Home. That story also touched Judy as it reminded her of the homecoming of her husband from Vietnam. Here's her story. 

"When my husband was in Viet Nam ,we were newly married. I wrote and mailed a letter every day(2 on Sat. for Sunday). I had the last letter in mail box, since he was to be home in 1-2 wks. I had an appt. to get my hair fixed, knew what I was going to wear. I told him in the letter I'd eaten onions but they'd be gone before he came home. I didn't hear his voice, and had one 3-way call in 15 months. I was so happy ..and that very day, he came home. He'd gotten an early plane out and hadn't slept in days. He came in, at the nearest airport and went to where his Dad was working, and he brought him to my parents, where I was living...I was so shocked...and very happy, onions and all...we went to visit his Mom, and went to a hotel, and he was so tired and sleepy, he knocked out..was I glad...because it was as if he had changed so much...he was much changed and for the second time I fell in love again even more than I was....I thank God he made it home.. 46 yrs ago."

Thank you for sharing with us, Judy. I'm sure that memory still is as bright today as it was then. 

I went out on the net to look for a picture of a Vietnam homecoming and found the one above. This is not Judy or anyone I know, but a photo taken of the homecoming greeting of one of the POWs who were released after the war. The picture tells it all and it's no wonder it won a Pulitzer Prize for the photographer. The link here to War Tales tells the story of a World War II veteran, Russell Ogan, who also served during the Korean War and was still in service when the Vietnam War ended. Here's what the retired Brigadier General said after looking back on his three decades with the Air Force. "Taking the prisoners out of Hanoi was the highlight of my career." You can read the rest of his story at the War Tales link. I'm sure he had some great homecomings of his own during his service to our country too. 

Remember, the giveaway contests are still going on until the end of June. Get details for my website giveaway on my News & Events page and you can throw your name in my blog contest hat (picking 5 winners of one of my books) by leaving a comment on one of my posts here in June. Please leave a way to be contacted if you want to enter the contest. Each comment on a new post gets you a new entry in the blog contest. One entry per person in the website contest. And you have to be 18 to enter.  

Freedom's Price

 Better than honor and glory, and History's iron pen, Was the thought of duty done and the love of his fellow-men. ~Richard Watson Gilder


Memorial Day weekend - the weekend that launches summer. Schools are out or will be soon. Seniors are graduating and getting ready to grab life by the horns and see what's next. Some young men and women came to that stage of life during a time of war. Their next thing was joining the military and fighting for freedom and their country. Many gave their all. This sign I saw at the traveling exhibit of the Vietnam War Memorial tells it all. The toll of dead and wounded and missing number in the thousands in every war. 

But a picture like this one brings home that truth in gut wrenching fashion. Row after row of crosses mark the graves of our soldiers who stepped up to the line for their country and did not come home. Tomorrow, Memorial Day, our nation pauses to remember and honor those soldiers.


These heroes are dead. They died for liberty - they died for us. They are at rest.  They sleep in the land they made free, under the flag they rendered stainless, under the solemn pines, the sad hemlocks, the tearful willows, and the embracing vines. They sleep beneath the shadows of the clouds, careless alike of sunshine or of storm, each in the windowless Place of Rest.  Earth may run red with other wars - they are at peace. In the midst of battle, in the roar of conflict, they found the serenity of death. I have one sentiment for soldiers living and dead: cheers for the living; tears for the dead.  ~Robert G. Ingersoll

My father didn't serve in the army. He was exempted from the military in World War II because he was a farmer, but I've known many men, including two of my uncles and two of my husband's uncles, who did serve our country during that war. Then young men of my generation faced the challenge of the Vietnam War and many served with honor and courage. Still now, men and women are putting themselves in harm's way to defend our way of life and fight for freedom. May we ever keep them in our prayers. 

Do you have family members who have served or who are even now part of the military serving our country? 

Some Gave All - The Traveling Wall

I've never been to Washington DC to see the Vietnam Wall, so when I found out the Traveling Wall was coming to a town near me, I wanted to go. I've researched several different wars for my historical novels but so far, the closest I've come to writing about the Vietnam War was in Jerry's life testimony story, Angels at the Crossroads. Jerry didn't go to Vietnam but being drafted led to some of the crises in his life. 

The draft and the war were very real to kids my age. Boys I went to school with went to war. My brother-in-law worked on airplanes in the Philippines. My cousin was in Vietnam. The news every night showed boys dying in the Vietnam jungles. Those boys whose names now cover that black wall. 

So many names. So many soldiers who stood up for their country and didn't come home. As the sign said at the Wall, I touched the Wall and the Wall touched me. One of the flags had this on it. All gave some. Some gave all. 

I'm at Mom's tonight and the Internet is down. Doing this post on my phone. Not the easiest way to type and the phone sometimes puts words in my fingers I didn't have in my head. I did send out a newsletter this a.m. I'll tell you all about it and my new contest on Wednesday. That will give me the chance to find the recipe for that wicked looking chocolate cake. So come back then. If you can't wait and would like to get the newsletter now, comment with your email and I'll send it out to you. 

But tonight I'm remembering. If you are a vet, thank you! If you have a vet in your family, thank you for your worries and prayers for him or her. 

A Day to Remember Those Who Gave Their All

"It doesn't take a hero to order men into battle. It takes a hero to be one of those men who goes into battle." (Norman Schwarzkopf)

Do you know why we have a long Memorial Day weekend? Some people think of it as a day to decorate the graves of their loved ones who have died. And that does happen at cemeteries across the country. But actually Memorial Day began as Decoration Day back in the 1860s after the Civil War. Wives, mothers, and sisters began decorating the graves of the fallen soldiers. It's thought as many as 700,000 men lost their lives in the Civil War, a lot of graves to decorate. Perhaps the women, who began the tradition, picked a day in late May because they had many blooming flowers for the grave decorations. 

It wasn't until 1967 that Federal law changed the name of the remembrance holiday officially to Memorial Day. The next year the date was changed from May 30 to the last Monday in May. Not everybody was happy with that change because they thought the real significance of the holiday - remembering those who'd been killed in wars - might be lost when the day became part of a three day weekend. 

Most communities have special observances to honor our soldiers. In our town, we have what is called the "healing field" where soldiers from our area who died in wars are honored with a flag. When you think about how that kind of memorial could be repeated in every town all across our country, you begin to realize the sacrifice so many have made to keep our country free and to stand up for the freedom of other countries as well. This weekend, thousands and thousands of flags will be placed on veterans' graves in honor of their service and sacrifices.


At our church this morning, we had two Vietnam War veterans. Men who answered the call when their country asked for their service. They made it home. Many did not. Over 58,000 soldiers were killed in that war. 11,465 of those killed in action were younger than twenty. The Korean War claimed almost 40,000 American casualties. World War II saw at least 60 million people worldwide killed. U.S. Military casualties were 416,800. World War I, the war those who fought it thought would end all wars, resulted in 126,000 American soldiers' death. 

My books often have scenes of war in the stories, and in my research for these scenes I have read many great stories of the men and women who have served our country in time of war. Most of these soldiers were ordinary men, and sometimes women, who responded with extraordinary valor when they stood in the gap to defend their country. Wars throughout history have claimed the lives of some of the finest among us and are still doing so today. Let us pray for peace and for our soldiers to come home safely. May we never forget those who did not. God bless America and our soldiers and their families!

Arlington National Cemetery

Remembering Veterans

This wall holds the names of veterans in our community.

This nation will remain the land of the free only so long as it is the home of the brave. ~ Elmer Davis

Do you know why we celebrate veterans on November 11? I like finding out the history behind holidays, so I did a little research.

 

In 1921, an unknown World War I soldier was buried in Arlington National Cemetery. Similar ceremonies occurred in England and France, where an unknown soldier was buried at each nation’s highest place of honor. These memorial gestures all took place on November 11 in recognition to the celebrated ending of World War I fighting at 11 a.m., November 11, 1918 (the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month). The day became known as“Armistice Day.”

The United States Congress officially recognized the end of World War I when it passed a concurrent resolution on June 4, 1926, with these words:

Whereas the 11th of November 1918, marked the cessation of the most destructive, sanguinary, and far reaching war in human annals and the resumption by the people of the United States of peaceful relations with other nations, which we hope may never again be severed, and

Whereas it is fitting that the recurring anniversary of this date should be commemorated with thanksgiving and prayer and exercises designed to perpetuate peace through good will and mutual understanding between nations; and

Whereas the legislatures of twenty-seven of our States have already declared November 11 to be a legal holiday: Therefore be it Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), that the President of the United States is requested to issue a proclamation calling upon the officials to display the flag of the United States on all Government buildings on November 11 and inviting the people of the United States to observe the day in schools and churches, or other suitable places, with appropriate ceremonies of friendly relations with all other peoples.

~~~

An act of Congress made Armistice Day a legal holiday in 1938. The men who fought in World War I thought it would be “the war to end all wars.” If that hope had been realized, November 11 might still be called Armistice Day, but only a few years after the holiday was proclaimed, war broke out in Europe. Over 16 million Americans eventually took part in World War II. 407,000 of them died in service, more than 292,000 in battle.

So at the request of veterans’ service organizations, the U.S. Congress amended the original 1938 act and changed the holiday from Armistice Day to Veterans Day. After President Eisenhower signed the legislation, November 11 became a day to honor American veterans of all wars.

 

In 1971, Veterans’ Day was changed to the fourth Monday in October. This met with such confusion and resistance that President Ford signed a law in 1975 to return the holiday to November 11. That date simply had too much historical and patriotic significance to be changed.

Today we recognized the veterans at our church as did many other churches. We have a couple of Vietnam War vets in our congregation. I overhead one of them thanking the other one, who was part of a helicopter crew, for his service. He said the helicopter guys had a special place in his heart. You can imagine how the helicopters coming to the aid of the ground forces might feel like the cavalry riding in to the rescue.

If you served in the armed forces, thank you.

A Day to Remember

"The dead soldier's silence sings our national anthem." (Aaron Kilbourn)

Memorial Day began as Decoration Day after the Civil War when the wives, mothers, and sisters began decorating the graves of the fallen soldiers. Slowly as the years passed, Decoration Day, observed on May 30, began to be called Memorial Day, but it wasn't until1967 that Federal law changed the name officially. The year after that the Uniform Holiday Act was passed and the observance of Memorial Day changed to the last Monday in May. Not everybody was happy with changing the date just to give people a three day weekend. Many felt it would take away from the original reason for the day - honoring those who gave their all for our country. 

The picture above is of the Memorial Field in my county. The flags represent soldiers from our area killed in service to their country. The memorial could be repeated in every town - big and small - all across our country. Thousands and thousands of flags were put on veterans' graves this Memorial Day in honor of their sacrifices.

At church this morning, one of the men, who served during the Vietnam War, was wearing a pin showing the number of Americans killed in that war. 58,169. The average age of the soldiers killed was 23. 11,465 of those killed in action were younger than 20.

I looked farther back. The Korean War claimed close to 40,000 American casualties. In World War II, 60 million people worldwide were killed. U.S. Military casualties were 416,800. In World War I, the war that people at that time believed would be the war to end all wars, 126,000 American soldiers perished.

The dead in the Civil War is thought to be around 700,000. So you can see how there were many who were left behind to grieve for loved ones. They didn't want to forget and so they remembered by decorating the graves.

We continue to remember today. Tomorrow, Monday, at 3 p.m., a moment of silence will be observed for all those who died in service to our country. May we never forget the debt we owe to those men and women willing to give their all so our flag can continue to fly over a free country. America, the Beautiful!