Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Let Freedom Ring

There is a place of quiet beauty sitting on some land that once belonged to the wife of Robert E. Lee. This land sits across the Potomac River from Washington D.C. not far from the Pentagon. Arlington National Cemetery. On this land more than 300,000 men and women are buried, veterans and military casualties from every war dating all the way back to the Civil War and right up through our more recent battles in Iraq.

I’ve been to this place of quiet beauty many times. My dad is buried here. His funeral was held on a bitterly cold December day and we smiled and said he would love it that we all had to stand out in the icy rain…he was a Marine after all. Pride and sorrow and gratitude and hope…you feel them all as you stand beside a grave in Arlington National Cemetery. One grave among thousands. Hundreds of thousands. The beauty and the silence and the order speak to you. And you love your country a little bit more.

There is another place of quiet beauty sitting on land far across the sea. It sits up on a bluff overlooking Omaha Beach and the English Channel. Close to 10,000 American servicemen and women are buried here. France has granted the United States a special, on going concession to this land, free of charge, free of tax. The U. S. flag flies here. Our flag. In France. They were grateful.

I’ve been to this place of quiet beauty just once. Pride and sorrow and gratitude and hope…you feel them all when you stand on a sandy beach in France on a windy spring day. You think about the boys who went into the sea and who died on that beach as men. You think of their fear and you stand in awe at their courage in spite of that fear. And you love your country a little more.

There are cemeteries like these all around the world…in England and Belgium, in The Philippines and Luxembourg, Tunisia and Panama. Every day men and women sacrifice much, sometimes everything, for our freedom. Freedom we don’t really think about most days.

Today is Veterans Day…a day set aside to honor these brave souls…take 2 minutes today to thank a veteran, to say a prayer for a soldier fighting far from home, to help a family left behind in some practical way, to write a note to someone who won’t be spending the holidays with their family, to donate to one of the many organizations that offer assistance and support to those returning home injured and hurting. Freedom is precious. And costly. In this season of Thanksgiving I want to remember to be especially grateful for mine.

18 comments:

  1. Beautiful post. You are correct, freedom is costly.

    Cindy

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  2. Beautifully said, Joyce. Thank you for the post to the Wounded Warrior Project.

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  3. Thanks for this post in this day Joyce.

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  4. Joyce,

    What a beautiful post! It literally brought me to tears. Thank you for talking about what can be a very difficult topic and yet one that is not talked about enough. Arlington Cemetery is an amazing place. We have yet to take our children there, but this post makes me want to do that sooner rather than later and it makes me love my country just a little bit more.

    Hugs and Blessings to you,
    Carol

    P.S. There's a lump in my throat. I wonder how much of that is tied to missing my own country.

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  5. Your remembrance on this Veteran's Day of the sacrifice our soldiers gave to this county is lovely. We have so many blessings and reasons to be thankful each morning we wake up in the United States of America.

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  6. That's beautifully written, Joyce. What more can I say?

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  7. Lovely, so well written. Thanks

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  8. Joyce,

    Well said post about all those things we take for granted each and everyday. It is for those very sacrifices that men and women who serve our country and the families that support them that should be honored not only today, but each and every day. We truly owe them so much!

    Love and Hugs ~ Kat

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  9. I second all the previous comments.
    Really, very nicely said.
    Amen.

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  10. Thanks for the beautiful post:) My father is a retired Colonel from the Army National Guard and served during The Gulf War in 1991. He went and had lunch with my daughters and shared with their school today--I think he enjoyed it and so did they. Thanks to all who serve--past, present, and future!

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  11. What a beautiful post! I was at Arlington Cemetery one year and got to see it with lots of tiny flags on each grave. It was breathtaking! I am always touched when I visit the tomb of the unknown soldier and see the military men who are there. Have a nice week. Love & blessings from NC!

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  12. I popped over from Carol's blog. What a beautiful post. WE do have so much to be thankful for and our freedoms are truly a blessing of sacrifice.

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  13. Hi, I'm visiting from Kat's blog. I love your sweet little table from Italy!

    Come visit me sometime at heavenly humor...

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  14. Very moving post and tribute to those who have fought to preserve our freedoms, Joyce. Thank you so much for sharing. I've been to Arlington Cemetery and it is indeed a place of beauty, albeit solemn, and rightfully so.

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  15. I will never forget visiting Arlington Cemetery.
    I get so emotional when I think about those who have fought for our freedom.
    This was a very touching post. Thanks!

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  16. I too have been to Arlington Cemetery and agree with all . Someones family is lonely today because of those tombstones . My hubby served as well in the 50 & 60's .I miss him so much . Some from my church have hubby's in Iraq now. We need to hold them up in prayer.

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