SouthernBoy
Regular Member
Independence Day
They were a small band of men, largely untrained and in the beginning, without real leadership. Yet they chose to face the most powerful military force on earth. They overcame all odds. They triumphed against unbelievable hardship. They sacrificed all. And they won.
How could they have done this? How could they have fought a war and even with having lost most of the battles, win?
They did it because they had a dream and they believed that this dream was bigger than themselves and worth dying for. They did it because their idea, that the common man could rise to uncommon heights was worth dying for. They did it because they firmly believed that their destiny was theirs and theirs alone and it too, was worth dying for. They did it to pass on their progeny that which they themselves had not known; freedom, liberty, and a “government of the people, by the people, and for the people.”
Because they did what they did. Because they mortgaged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor, we have an absolute obligation to preserve their grand plan and their vision of the nation they built with their blood. To do less is to do a terrible dishonor to their memory. We must sanctify their sacrifices with our assurance that their efforts were not made in vain. We must renew that which they began, for our time and our children’s time. For this is the United States of America; God did indeed shed his light on thee.
For this Fourth of July and every Fourth of July, show the flag with pride and humility, and pause to remember. Remember Concord and Valley Forge and Yorktown, Antietam and Cold Harbor and Gettysburg. Remember the Western Front and the Ardennes, Pearl Harbor and Normandy and Iwo Jima and Guadalcanal. Remember Pork Chop Hill and Ichcon, Quang Tre and Hamburger Hill and Chu Li. Remember what the price of freedom has cost. That is has always been paid in patriots’ blood. Remember that their “uncommon valor was a common virtue”. Remember those who gave up all of their tomorrows so that you might have today.
It is good and proper that we do this. For by doing so, by remembering and by honoring the ultimate sacrifice of our benefactors, we are less likely to send our nation’s finest in harm’s way. To forget these lessons is to suffer fools, for fools will surely rush in when memories dim.
So fly your flag high and proud. Fire your fireworks and have a time of it. Give thanks for the gifts you have received, the blessings you enjoy, and the freedoms you cherish. After all, why shouldn’t we do these things? We… are Americans.
SouthernBoy, 1994
They were a small band of men, largely untrained and in the beginning, without real leadership. Yet they chose to face the most powerful military force on earth. They overcame all odds. They triumphed against unbelievable hardship. They sacrificed all. And they won.
How could they have done this? How could they have fought a war and even with having lost most of the battles, win?
They did it because they had a dream and they believed that this dream was bigger than themselves and worth dying for. They did it because their idea, that the common man could rise to uncommon heights was worth dying for. They did it because they firmly believed that their destiny was theirs and theirs alone and it too, was worth dying for. They did it to pass on their progeny that which they themselves had not known; freedom, liberty, and a “government of the people, by the people, and for the people.”
Because they did what they did. Because they mortgaged their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor, we have an absolute obligation to preserve their grand plan and their vision of the nation they built with their blood. To do less is to do a terrible dishonor to their memory. We must sanctify their sacrifices with our assurance that their efforts were not made in vain. We must renew that which they began, for our time and our children’s time. For this is the United States of America; God did indeed shed his light on thee.
For this Fourth of July and every Fourth of July, show the flag with pride and humility, and pause to remember. Remember Concord and Valley Forge and Yorktown, Antietam and Cold Harbor and Gettysburg. Remember the Western Front and the Ardennes, Pearl Harbor and Normandy and Iwo Jima and Guadalcanal. Remember Pork Chop Hill and Ichcon, Quang Tre and Hamburger Hill and Chu Li. Remember what the price of freedom has cost. That is has always been paid in patriots’ blood. Remember that their “uncommon valor was a common virtue”. Remember those who gave up all of their tomorrows so that you might have today.
It is good and proper that we do this. For by doing so, by remembering and by honoring the ultimate sacrifice of our benefactors, we are less likely to send our nation’s finest in harm’s way. To forget these lessons is to suffer fools, for fools will surely rush in when memories dim.
So fly your flag high and proud. Fire your fireworks and have a time of it. Give thanks for the gifts you have received, the blessings you enjoy, and the freedoms you cherish. After all, why shouldn’t we do these things? We… are Americans.
SouthernBoy, 1994
Last edited: