On Veterans Day, as on Memorial Day, I remember my dad, Col. Samuel R. Combs. In the memorable words of Robert Denerstein, “He answered his country’s call even before the phone rang, volunteering for the Army after Pearl Harbor.” He went on to make the Army his career. My dad died in 2006 just weeks before his 90th birthday. Honestly, he wasn’t the best father in the world. But he was a fine soldier.
To those who have served, and to those who serve today:
Thank you.
It is the Soldier, not the minister
Who has given us freedom of religion.
It is the Soldier, not the reporter
Who has given us freedom of the press.
It is the Soldier, not the poet
Who has given us freedom of speech.
It is the Soldier, not the campus organizer
Who has given us freedom to protest.
It is the Soldier, not the lawyer
Who has given us the right to a fair trial.
It is the Soldier, not the politician
Who has given us the right to vote.
It is the Soldier who salutes the flag,
Who serves beneath the flag,
And whose coffin is draped by the flag,
Who allows the protester to burn the flag.
Charles Michael Province, U.S. Army
Copyright Charles M. Province, 1970, 2005
http://www.pattonhq.com/koreamemorial.html
Thanks, Papa, for your many years of service. I love you and miss you.
On this Veterans Day, please make a contribution to an organization (or two or three!) that supports veterans or active-duty military personnel.
The Signaleer has a nice history of Remembrance Day, which begat Armistice Day, which begat Veterans Day, and he includes the classic World War I poem, In Flanders Fields. Worth a visit.
