Veteran's Memorial

My office, as editor of the Infantry Bugler, sits on the second floor of the new state-of-the-art National Infantry Museuem. A parade field behind the museum, sewn with the soil of historic American battlefields from all over the world, is the site of weekly graduation ceremonies for basic trainees.

 
Platoons of soldiers often gather on the sidewalk in front of the "Follow Me" Statue. From my window I can see them, at ease with their choices, at least on the surface, marching double file back to a barrack or a home where, hopefully, there is love.  I grew up in this town full of soldiers, home of the Infantry, and now, the Armor. Young men in their dress blue uniforms walking the highway to the mall is a common sight. It's common for a stranger to pay for a soldier's meal. Common to place a hand on a uniformed sleeve and say thank you. Common to whisper, "God keep you safe, Soldier."

If you know a soldier, say thank you today.

For Poetry Friday on the Veteran's Day, I hope you enjoy "Chats with Eleanor." There lots more poetry to be found at Teaching Authors.

CHATS WITH ELEANOR
by Pris Campbell

Fairy Godmothers with ample laps
and June Cleaver faces slid down the rabbit hole
of old dial-up phones, ten cent colas, Betsy Wetsys,
and scratchy LPs an innocent lifetime ago.

Try strutting about nowdays in tiara and starched skirt,
waving a wand---the madhouse will open its jaws
and swallow you whole, but

my fairy godmother is clever.
She dresses like Eleanor Roosevelt,
talks like Eleanor, looks like Eleanor,
says she is Eleanor, back from the dead.

Each night she brings me hot chocolate, sits,
tell stories about quiet fireside chats,
her husband’s withered legs and how much
she thought he loved her before Lucy.

She reminds me to floss every night
and to be sure to carry an umbrella
should sudden thunderstorms threaten.
She emphasizes that one must learn to
be brave

Read the rest here.

Honoring the Soldiers

I spent most of this week at the Infantry Conference downtown at the trade center. It's a mind boggling collection of technology and soldiers. From flashlights and water containers to unmanned aerial vehicles and drones.

Technologically, this is a terrible photo, and yet there is something about it that I like. It gives you a feel for the constant motion on the trade show floor.







Then on Thursday, my dad went with about 100 other World War II veterans on the Honor Flight to Washington, DC. They visited the World War II memorial and saw plenty of other sites while they were there. On their return home, about 1400 people cheered their arrival at the airport. Sons and daughters cheered, grandchildren held homemade banners, and great grandchildren waved flags. I've never seen a more surprised and delighted crowd of veterans. My dad said it took two hours for him to get from the plane to his car. He shook hands, hugged necks, and was saluted by ROTC students and Army band members. It was quite a day.



Since many of the schools I work with in the Delaney sales job are in the vicinity of Fort Benning, one or both parents of many students serve in the military. My recommended titles for the week salute the sacrifices of our fallen soldiers. War Memorials is a new set from Rourke Publishing recommended for grades four through eight. Authors Jennifer Burrows and Maureen Robins do a great job presenting basic history about each war, along with detailed information on the memorial.

Titles in the set include:
Arlington National Cemetary
Korean War Memorial
USS Arizona Memorial
Vietnam War Memorial
World War I Memorial
World War II Memorial

These are brand new, so AR levels are not in yet.