Dirge For Two Veterans

By Walt Whitman

THE last sunbeam
Lightly falls from the finish’d Sabbath,
On the pavement here, and there beyond it is looking,
Down a new-made double grave.

Lo, the moon ascending,
Up from the east the silvery round moon,
Beautiful over the house-tops, ghastly, phantom moon,
Immense and silent moon.

I see a sad procession,
And I hear the sound of coming full-key’d bugles,
All the channels of the city streets they’re flooding,
As with voices and with tears.

I hear the great drums pounding,
And the small drums steady whirring,
And every blow of the great convulsive drums,
Strikes me through and through.

For the son is brought with the father,
(In the foremost ranks of the fierce assault they fell,
Two veterans son and father dropt together,
And the double grave awaits them.)

Now nearer blow the bugles,
And the drums strike more convulsive,
And the daylight o’er the pavement quite has faded,
And the strong dead-march enwraps me.

In the eastern sky up-buoying,
The sorrowful vast phantom moves illumin’d,
(‘Tis some mother’s large transparent face,
In heaven brighter growing.)

O strong dead-march you please me!
O moon immense with your silvery face you soothe me!
O my soldiers twain! O my veterans passing to burial!
What I have I also give you.

The moon gives you light,
And the bugles and the drums give you music,
And my heart, O my soldiers, my veterans,
My heart gives you love.

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Observant readers and users of this site may notice that I apparently developed the ability to travel through the space/time continuum with some of the recent site updates.   Look carefully at some of the stuff recently added to the site and this blog and you’ll see what I mean.

First I need to adjust the clock on this server and now I have displayed time travel abilities.

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Happy Thanksgiving everyone! I hope you all had a great day today!

“Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor, and whereas both Houses of Congress have by their joint Committee requested me “to recommend to the People of the United States a day of public thanksgiving and prayer to be observed by acknowledging with grateful hearts the many signal favors of Almighty God especially by affording them an opportunity peaceably to establish a form of government for their safety and happiness.”

“Now therefore I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be. That we may then all unite in rendering unto him our sincere and humble thanks, for his kind care and protection of the People of this Country previous to their becoming a Nation, for the signal and manifold mercies, and the favorable interpositions of his providence, which we experienced in the course and conclusion of the late war, for the great degree of tranquility, union, and plenty, which we have since enjoyed, for the peaceable and rational manner, in which we have been enabled to establish constitutions of government for our safety and happiness, and particularly the national One now lately instituted, for the civil and religious liberty with which we are blessed; and the means we have of acquiring and diffusing useful knowledge; and in general for all the great and various favors which he hath been pleased to confer upon us.”

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Stephen Graves: Eagle Scout

Homer Dearmin sent me this page from the website for Stephen Graves, a candidate in 2004 for the US Congress in NY’s Fifth Congressional district.

Some of the biographical material on the site and photo captions read like they were written by a second rate publicist.         His biography begins:

“Like many people living in New York’s 5^th district, Stephen Graves immigrated to the greatest city in the world from elsewhere. Stephen Graves grew up in Tennessee, lived in Los Angeles and also abroad in Asia and Europe…”

He immigrated to New York from “elsewhere”?     The man grew up in Tennessee, not some foreign country!     That surely did not gain him any support from the district’s immigrant communities.

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The world was a very different place 20 years ago.   Europe was divided between two opposing powers, engaged in a “Cold War” for decades.     Germany was split in two.     A wall split its former capital, helping to make those in East Germany prisoners in their own country.     Then the wall came down and all was changed.

Last Summer those who attended NOAC were told about the Power of One.     In this case, it was the power of a few:   those who dared to dream of freedom for Germany and Europe and who lead others towards that end.

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This bit of gloating is just for Greg.

UNC 31, ECU 17

And to think this happened on “Talk Like a Pirate Day”, too!

What a beautiful song…

Might as well “Hark the Sound”, too.

I don’t really care about college football, but couldn’t pass up the chance to gloat, be an “OCF” and pick on a friend or two!

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Happy Bastille Day to our friends in France!

In honor of the occasion I share a great scene with you from the film, “Casablanca”.

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Tu Cubin Noonie 508 S47

Happy Canada Day to my friends to the north. Last year I posted some anecdotes of my time traveling in this country, living near its border, and shared a fitting tribute for this day. Long live “The Maple Leaf Forever“.     Alexander Muir was inspired to write this song in 1867, the year of Canada’s confederation, by the sight of a large maple tree on his property in Toronto.

I think the flap pictured here, 508 S47,   might be the only Canadian related Order of the Arrow patch.     I find that hard to believe, but can’t find another one right now.   This was issued for the 10th Canadian Jamboree in 2001, held on Prince Edward Island.

Another musical tribute to the Dominion of Canada is after the jump.

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I read this story earlier today and wanted to share it with readers of this blog.     Gina Marie Incadela was diagnosed with autism at the age of two.     At three she could not speak.       She was blessed to have some inspired teachers who noted that music helped her learn.     So, she went from being unable to talk to singing the national anthem at major sporting events by the age of seven.

You can hear Gina sing before a Magics vs. Celtics game in this year’s NBA playoff after the jump.

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While tending to your family celebrations today, please take a moment to remember what we commemorate on this day.   I am told it used to be customary, especially in the South, to decorate graves in the late Spring around Memorial Day. In fact, this holiday has its origins in the decorating of graves of those who gave their lives for this country during the US Civil War, or the War Between the States:

I. The 30th day of May, 1868, is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers, or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country during the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village, and hamlet churchyard in the land. In this observance no form or ceremony is prescribed, but Posts and comrades will, in their own way, arrange such fitting services and testimonials of respect as circumstances may permit.

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