Family Memorial

While looking at some old photos that I have on cd; I came across several of men in uniform. Lindsay and I began to wonder what role these men had played in various conflicts. I called my dad and asked him about some of the pictures that I found. There were a couple men who were not pictured in their uniforms one was my great-uncle Buddy, and the other was my great-uncle Tommy. Buddy served as an MP in Iran, and he also worked on the railroad and cooked, but I'm unsure of how Tommy served.


As is often the case around here, many of my ideas wouldn't come to fruition without Lindsay's help. We both had the idea, independently, to create a slideshow using some of our pictures. She worked on it this afternoon and put it to music. My desire is for you to pause and remember those who fought for your freedom and those who served/serve to protect it. Many times I wonder at why the Lord allowed me... me of all people, to be born here in America---free. All over the world people live in constant opression, yet I'm free. Just as my salvation was bought with a price, Christ's blood, my freedom has also been bought with a price...the blood of millions of young men who bravely fought so that I might be free. I can never repay either of these debts, so I choose to remember and cherish them both.


Please click on the little soldier to go to the slideshow.


This summer the girls and I will be doing a unit on World War II. We have already begun reading The Victory Garden, which is a fictional account of a young girl's life during WWII. We are planning on creating our own webpage with activities we have done, books we have used, websites we like and lots of pictures. If you have any suggested materials, please post them. We are also planning on contacting the VFW to get in touch with a WWII vet. I would hate for my girls to grow up not having had the opportunity to hear the experiences of a WWII soldier.

This weekend in honor of Memorial Day, Gene, Lindsay and I watched The Great Raid. I love old war movies and this is a new one that feels like an old one. You may have to love old war movies for that to make sense. If you haven't seen the movie, it is a very good depiction of a terrible time. It is the story of the rescue of the soldiers who survived the Bataan Death March and 3 years in a POW camp afterwards. These men survived terrible atrocities that you or I can hardly imagine. They were deserted by their country for 3 years, never expecting to see home again. It is one of those stories, that if not true, would be unbelievable. The odds against Mucci's Ranger unit being able to accomplish their mission were insurmountable. Yet, this Ranger unit had 600 volunteers for a mission that was not strategic and would only utilize 100 men. They were facing 250 Japanese guards at the base, after having to cross 30 miles which were heavily patrolled by the Japanese. They weren't fit for combat any more,so there was only one purpose behind this mission, which was to do the right thing--to bring these men home.

I hope that you enjoy the slideshow and that it will cause you to stop and reflect on the price that has been paid for both your earthly freedom and your eternal salvation.