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I Remember...and Thank you all

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The Marine stood and faced God,
Which must always come to pass.
He hoped his shoes were shining,
Just as brightly as his brass.

"Step forward now, you! Marine,
How shall I deal with you?
Have you always turned the other cheek?
To My Church have you been true?"

The Marine squared his shoulders and said,
"No, Lord, I guess I ain't.
Because those of us who carry guns,
Can't always be a saint.

I've had to work most Sundays,
And at times my talk was tough.
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.

But, I never took a penny,
That wasn't mine to keep...
Though I worked a lot of overtime,
When the bills got just too steep.

And I never passed a cry for help,
Though at times I shook with fear.
And sometimes, God, forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.

I know I don't deserve a place,
Among the people here.
They never wanted me around,
Except to calm their fears.

If you've a place for me here, Lord,
It needn't be so grand.
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand."

There was a silence all around the throne,
Where the saints had often trod.
As the Marine waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.

"Step forward now, Marine,
You've borne your burdens well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell."

~Author Unknown~


It's the Military, not the reporter who has given us the freedom of the press. It's the Military, not the poet, who has given us the freedom of speech. It's the Military, not the politicians that ensures our right to Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness. It's the Military who salutes the flag, who serves beneath the flag, and whose coffin is draped by the flag.
 
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 isn't 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 isn't free.

Enjoy Your Freedom & God Bless Our Troops
Show Your Support Send This Page Along Today
 
Hubby, son and I marched in the parade here in town. Our son was originally supposed to march with his unit in Florence,but since they are deploying his unit decided they could be with their families and march where they wanted. We actually had a nice turn out of vets this year. I was very proud of my guys. :D
 
The wife and I went shooting at our local MG shoot. I shot 900 rounds, all but about 50 rounds out of Battle Rifles/Carbines. Shot an MP40 the guy next to me had. NICE!
 
Nickle said:
The wife and I went shooting at our local MG shoot. I shot 900 rounds, all but about 50 rounds out of Battle Rifles/Carbines. Shot an MP40 the guy next to me had. NICE!

We need PICS!!!!!!!! :D
 
A picture of some of what I was shooting from a previous outing.

vermontmilitia2004011.jpg
 
The funniest thing was that I did that with a semi-auto at a full auto shoot, and it was the 3rd gun of mine that I picked up. I didn't have any M14 or L1A1 mags loaded with tracers before I went, and the RomAK 3 (Romanian Dragunov) won't feed tracers.

Somebody this year made a crack about some fool parking "downrange". Good one.
 
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