The United
States Marine Corps War Memorial is dedicated in remembrance of Marine dead of
all wars and their comrades of other services who fell fighting beside them. It
was unveiled in 1954 on the birthday of the Corps -- November 10 -- and is located
in Arlington Ridge Park adjacent to Arlington National Cemetery. As a
nineteen-year-old Marine, I took the train from Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia,
to Washington, D.C. A few of us walked and ran from the station to the
monument, including across the nearly half-mile long Arlington Memorial Bridge
which spans the Potomac River. Later on the same trip, three of us raced the 898
steps to the top of the Washington Monument .... it occurs to me we were all a bit crazy in those days and it is my understanding the steps
are now closed to the public.
Semper Fidelis, baby ....
Once
upon a time never comes again is true for individuals, but it can come again
and again and again for organizations and, in a way, for families. I look
backward in time to my ancestors and think about them .... I look forward in time
to my descendants and wonder about them. The past is foggy, at best, and the
future is "whatever will be, will be -- que sera, sera."
There
never will be another January 24 in which I meet a Marine Corps captain and a gunnery
sergeant in a hotel room, sign on the dotted line to enlist in the Corps and take
the oath to "support and defend the Constitution of the United States against
all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance
to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United
States and the orders of the officers appointed over me ...." I was eighteen .... a few months out of high school .... hungry for adventure.
Thousands
took that oath before me and thousands will tomorrow and tomorrow and the days after
tomorrow, creating an ongoing bond of "for now permanency."
In
all probability, the Marine Corps will drift into obscurity at some future time
and no doubt fade from living memory, but having been a Marine provides a "sort
of lastingness" in a world where even the planet will disappear eventually and
offers a legacy and traditions to grip firmly and to hold dearly.
By
the way, the hotel where I met the captain and the gunnery sergeant is long since torn down ....
Who
was it who first said, "the price of life is death ...."
Yep
.... but, in the meanwhile .... semper fi, baby ....
4 comments:
Hello Fram!
What a nice post to look at.I quess you miss the marines very much.But you have all those great memories about your experience in it.A marine, always a marine.I think it is great someone still belives in the good and willing to do something for it.Here in Nrway it is a sad situation in our goverment.Each day there is soo much propaganda I almost want to puke those fakers here..so i dont look at news nowadays.I dont care about the royals.I dont care how much the rich ones is having fun.-no..no..And I hate Isis (isil)which the Erna Solberg -goverment has brought to our country in the name of we must be humans also to those..
Ilove to come here to your site..i is something safe and good about it..and you write good as always..
Yes it is now the fourth day of the big flu named Influensa A h3n2 og Influensa B Victoria.I think I have them both ohh god !I am soo tired of it..
I shall move on now to look a little of Vikings,I like to see the russian battle that is coming..ok see you around and be healthy and safe
Vi snakkes Fram, Hilsen Anita
I have mixed memories about the Marine Corps, Anita -- some good, some not so good. Mostly I think of things I could have done better or, in the least, tried harder to do better. I suppose everyone is that way about episodes in their lives. I was a good Marine in some ways, not so good in other ways, but, as I always say, I learned a great deal by having been a Marine and I am glad I did time with the military and, especially, in the Corps. Semper fi, Anita ....
The Old Norse thought fate determined the individual's path through life. I do not think it is as simple as that and I like to believe, for better or for worse, my own choices/decisions have taken me to where I am today.
I agree with you about governments in the sense that I essentially feel the same about "my" government as you feel about "your" government. Under the right circumstances, I would leave the United States and (probably) never return. Other than technological advances, it would seem humankind has made no real advancement since we came down from the trees. Emotions outweigh common sense, and skilled communicators can sell the masses any idea or concept, no matter how ludicrous it might be.
As for the "Vikings" miniseries, I think this will be the last season I watch it. It has become no more than just another "soap opera" and the squabbling is too much of a reminder of our own times.
I am glad you enjoy coming to my blog. I enjoy being at your blog, too. It is sort of a refuge from the world for me.
Remember to be on the lookout for the northern lights because my wish for health-luck for you will be traveling with them .... I hope your life will be filled with good fortune in every way, Anita .... alltid være søt og glad ....
Hih hih alltid være søt og glad :))Ja det kan jeg være når du sier det så fint på norsk.Jeg ville bare takke for kommentaren på min side.Jeg er nesten frisk nå(.Var vist litt for optimistisk her for leden trodde jeg var bra)
Syns det er vakkert du lærer ett nytt språk..
Vi seest snart min venn
Learning languages is foreboding to me, especially trying to speak them. Each language has its nuances and regional differences in terms of pronunciation, which is why I never dare attempt to speak any except for English. Reading them is pretty much a different matter, as there is less chance of making a fool of oneself.
Take your name, for instance. I would pronounce Anita as "A neat a," while I once had an English professor born and raised in Virginia who pronounced Anita as "A neat er." That was his wife's name.
As the Norwegian Ole Rølvaag said writing as Per Smevik: "I have gotten pretty good at English now, although I must admit that it goes more slowly than I had expected. It's a terribly difficult language to learn." That is how it is for me with any language ....
I hope you will be completely well again very soon. Remember to watch for the aurora borealis because it is carrying some of my "health-luck" from me to you.
Later, sweet one .... jeg tenker på deg ....
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