A military way of life began years ago
When Dad decided that is the way he would go.
This decision was not at that time by him made,
In fact, many years later into this reality he would wade.

Many new experiences gave him much enjoyment,
As he eagerly transitioned into this new employment.
Those early years brought both grief and joy
Into the life of that Alabama boy.

Many years later after deciding to stay,
And from the military not to stray,
He joyfully watched son number one
Enter the race which dad had run.

His job choice was obviously different from dad’s,
As he began pursuing that which would make him glad.
To see him go in the direction which was right
Brought to dad much delight.

Now several years beyond this time
He is still enjoying service that is positively defined.
Nearly half way now to completing his career
He perseveres dutifully, year after year.

Many places in the world he has now gone
While family awaits his return to home.
Now while I recount all of this joy,
There is another story involving another boy.

Son number two has now followed the tradition
As in the Air Force he has accepted a position.
Initial training only recently finished
Anticipation is now newly replenished.

Very recently returning to family and home
Entering into a way not previously known.
Anxiously awaiting the birth of a son,
About to begin a routine never done.

“Where were the girls in all of this?”
Is a question that many will not dismiss.
“Where into this picture do they fit in?”
“How, without them, did this all begin?”

The answers are very easily seen,
As they are obviously part of the team.
While waiting at home often in despair,
They have repeatedly proven the extent of their care.

Always supportive though often not knowing
Their appreciation never were they not showing.
Whether wife or daughter, sister, or mother
They never let despair their devotion smother.

A “great way of life” is how it is described
This is a philosophy to which I have ascribed.
All of the aforementioned would surely agree
That this motto is that which we will share for free.

Being a good soldier is a lofty aspiration.
Achievement of this goal brings high admiration.
This purpose should be one’s determination,
Gratitude will result from a proud nation.

To see this high and lofty end,
Attention to detail must one lend.
Devotion to duty must he never bend,
Loud and clear must this message he send.

Above and beyond is his call,
Careful to never in disgrace fall.
Proudly with his peers standing tall,
Confidence and courage he shows to all.

To know that He is always near
Should result in each constant cheer.
No more should there be the presence of fear
His nearness should cause it to disappear.

Assurance will in its place be found
Joy will everywhere amazingly abound.
Singing may result in wonderful sound
Pleasing you’ll be to be around!

What’s happened to the America we once knew?
What’s so captivating about this lifestyle new?
Have we now “progressed” to an unrecognizable state?
Is there any recourse? Is it now too late?

These and many more questions abound.
Answers to these can be hardly found.
Morality and decency that once were known,
Seems now rarely, if ever, shown.

Debauchery and protest are now the norm
To resist this usually creates a massive storm.
Our schools have become a breeding ground
For all that the liberal elites expound.

Removal of our history by those who don’t know
That where we have come from we should proudly show.
A violent minority seems to rule the land
As they ignorantly, defiantly, continue to stand.


Our demise as a nation that once was known
As a place where honor, courage, and morality was shown,
Seems destined if we to our roots do not turn
As progressives seemed determined to see us not return.

Being the wife of a military man
Takes a special kind of a girl.
To stay behind and wring her hands,
While hubby travels all over the world.

Whether “active duty”, or “part time”,
With the expectations placed on each,
As deployment numbers continue to climb,
To the “sand-box” or the beach.

As she watches him pack his bags with care,
Not knowing how long he will be gone,
Uncertainty looms everywhere
Until he is safely back home.

He often wonders while he’s away,
Is there reason for concern?
Will she often for his safety pray?
Or will her resentment burn?

To know her support will last till the end,
Makes his job easier to bear.
To know while he serves wherever they send,
Her commitment to his service she did swear.

We fought in the jungles of Viet Nam,
We sailed the South China Sea.
We stormed the beaches of Normandy,
We served that men may be free.

We persevered through trying times,
Endured the scorn of some.
We watched our buddies lose their limbs,
Many never made it home.

In Iraqi Freedom and Desert Storm
We again answered the call.
Many sleepless nights in the heat,
And again, many gave their all.

We are American Veterans, and proudly so.
We care not for glory or fame.
We simply desire common respect,
There’s surely, in this, no shame.

In future days more wars will be fought,
Young folks will be challenged still.
The American Veteran will again stand tall
And conquer through determined will.

The day seems long,
There is no end in sight.
Gone is my song
So, hasten the night.

Troubles are many
There seems no relief.
Friends – there aren’t any,
That is my belief.

Is my thinking wrong?
Have I been deceived?
Did I really lose the song?
Or have I foolishly believed??

I went for a walk in the park today,
So full of energy was I.
I watched the children busy at play,
They seemed to care less who passed by.

I thought as I watched them, lost in their fun,
“If only we could be so carefree!”
They would frolic for a while and off they would run
Wherever they chose to be.

I found myself wishing that I could return
Back in time if that possibly could be.
How nice it would be to new games learn
And from life’s burdens be free.

After all the “what ifs” were finally passed,
I, back to reality returned.
It was back to work, though not as fast
As to vacation I had wishfully yearned.

I once was young and knew it all.
For advice on no one would I call.
There was little in life that I feared,
In fact, the authorities were often, by me, jeered.

As teen years approached this attitude prevailed.
It mattered not to have tried and failed.
Challenges were met with little concern.
I, obviously, had very much to learn.

As a young adult to a crossroad I came.
I could no longer pursue fortune or fame.
Life was not always going to be
Only that which I had chosen to see.

In turning from my youthful, pride-filled way
I heard one smarter than I say,
“There is always someone smarter than you,
His advice, therefore, you should eagerly pursue.”

The Christmas season has arrived once more
That time which people habitually adore.
What is it about this time of the year
That causes such emotion, both joys and fear?

For children it is possibly a time of fear
There’s concern that Santa might perhaps not be near.
For many of those who have advanced in time
They find it to be a time that is prime.

Family will be united for a little while
Activities will bring more than a smile.
Worries and other issues at hand
Will again be momentarily banned.



A question naturally arises for a few
As observation is made in all that we do.
Will the “reason for the season” again be ignored?
Will the mention of His name cause many to be “bored”?

Have we become so advanced that we cannot remember
This birthday we celebrate each and every December?
The focus of most is grossly distorted
In fact, in many, it’s completely aborted.

A simple thought I’d like to propose
Although many will perhaps choose to oppose.
Some may say that I’m out on a limb
But let’s return to the Savior and focus on Him!

I read many pages before this pause
I had to stop – just because.
What I had read had stirred my mind
Nowhere else would I these words find!

Startled was I in a moment’s time
My mood had changed from depressed to sublime.
What was it that caused this momentous shift?
Had I suddenly begun to carelessly drift?

Time will tell beyond a doubt
Hopefully I’ll be able to figure it out.
But until then I’ll sit and stare
And eventually I’ll be able to better prepare!

In olden days folks seemed to care
About friends and strangers everywhere
Though things were often in short supply  
There seemed enough to “make it by.”

An attitude of community seemed to prevail
Especially in times of great travail.
Being neighborly was common then
It reached beyond next of kin.

In this day of constant haste,
There is never a moment most have to “waste.”
Is “waste” really the appropriate word?
Does helping a neighbor seem so absurd?
  
It seems we have lost a needed trait.
We seem to have not a moment to wait.
If we, however, are ever despaired
Would we then wish that someone cared?

It is odd, somehow, that when the tables are turned,
We find ourselves wishing more compassion was learned.
That “learning” which then is so desired
Is often by many not acquired.

The day is cold and dreary,
The folks are growing weary.
Gone is the sun,
The frolicking and fun,
Many are now quite teary.

The eagle soared to heights above,
Then swooped down to the ground,
To that place that he had grown to love
Where sustenance could be found.

Up above where the air is thin,
He has an amazing view.
It is there his pursuit will begin
To ****** a rat, or shrew.

The astonished victim down below,
Tries to his dismay to flee.
“How can the eagle possibly know,
That I will not long be free?”

Accuracy in vision, as well as in flight,
The eagle can rightly claim.
Supremacy in nearly every fight,
Adds much to his ongoing fame.

Extraordinary creature, certainly is he,
The master of the sky.
Most of creation will surely agree,
And will never try to defy.

In the house on the corner lived a huge yellow cat.
This cat was clumsy and a wee bit fat.
He was constantly being pestered by a troublesome rat,
Who was playing with his mind by hiding under a hat.

The cat thought to himself, “I’ll fix this pest,
I’ll prepare for him a cozy nest.”
However, when it was put to the extreme test,
The rat said to him, “Surely you jest!”

The nest was ignored all the way around,
The rat could be heard making an annoying sound.
Nowhere near this nest would he be found,
From his distance the annoyance would continually resound.

The moral of the story is quite simple you see,
The rat was content to antagonize with glee.
The cat, however, no happy camper was he,
He simply was as dumb as could be.

Life is what you make it,
Or so the saying goes.
Does it, however, matter
What the enemy throws?

Surely one should be on guard
And great attention pay.
Many things are coming
Down the pike each day.

How one will respond
To an unforeseen event
Is totally dependent
Upon his mental bent.
  
If he is determined
To see good in everything,
Then he will be satisfied
In whatever life does bring.

If, however, he’s negative,
And sees in all a curse,
Then he’ll be singing
A totally opposite verse.

So what then is the point?
It’s really plain to see.
Look always on the positive
And then contented be.

The preacher stood on Sunday morn
Downcast was he and all forlorn.
He remembered well a former day
And wondered why most had turned away.

The church long ago was normally filled
With congregants desiring what God had willed.
Now long gone and numbering few
Everywhere can be seen an empty pew.

Why does the crowd no longer inquire?
Why God’s directions do they no longer desire?
They now instead down the street congregate
Where modern practices for them await.

Gone is fidelity to God’s Word
Seldom can faithful preaching be heard.
Entertainment now is the accepted norm
Sin’s consequence is a forbidden form.


Yes, the old way is now a thing of the past
Into oblivion it now is cast.
Truth that has for years endured
Can it this day be ensured?

Old fashioned preaching they’ll no longer hear
Hell fire and brimstone they no longer fear.
As long as one leaves feeling swell
They’re happy to continue there to dwell.

There are three ways to do things these days, it seems,
And so the confusion abounds.
As one wishes, plans, and strenuously schemes
To do that novel thing he has found.

There is a right way which is always right,
No matter what others may think.
It seems though that some say with all of their might,
That this way is that which does stink.

Another way there is which is always wrong
And this way many will not leave.
The wrongness they are often pointedly shown,
Yet they simply will not believe.

Then there is a way that is mine. All mine!
It is the way I usually choose.
This way is right in my mind, I opine,
To admit that it is wrong, I refuse!

So I will keep plugging along this path,
Regardless of what others may say.
I will even endure their ridicule and wrath,
When they say there is a much better way.

Old age is viewed in different ways,
Depending on how you spend your days.
From a youngster’s view it is so far away,
Yet, when it arrives, youth was “yesterday”.

To anticipate “forty”, ‘tis a thing that is true,
Which often makes one sad and blue.
To think after this of reaching “fifty”,
Is to some, “Not very nifty.”

“Sixty or “Seventy” is way out of reach,
Many will themselves, deliberately teach.
While these thoughts are each “quite weighty”,
Have you given much thought to reaching “eighty”?

Yes, old age is a thing most will see,
It should be pursued with much glee.
For to have not reached this joyful goal,
Is to have missed many blessings untold.

The memories of a veteran are as varied as can be,
Some involve sorrow, others genuine glee.
To have learned new things and seen new places
While trying to put names to remembered faces.

To have given your all and passed the test
Brings joy in knowing that you have done your best.
At other times, however, to have tried and failed
Yet, in the end to have still prevailed.

On some missions wondering how you had made it through, Accomplishing what few had the courage to do.
Sometimes, regardless of how hard you would try,
You would find yourself unable to do anything but cry.

Upon learning that a buddy had given his life
In the heat of battle, amidst unbelievable strife.
Some of these things that a warrior must endure
Puts metal in his backbone, that is for sure.
  
To ask one if he would ever do it again,
Many would affirm without any spin.
To have succeeded in defeating a menacing foe
Makes one eager to again go.

A few made the choice to from duty flee
Thinking that in another country they could be free.
The freedom they enjoyed in their cowardly state,
Is to most of us, however, a miserable fate.

The service of no two was exactly the same,
Most never experienced prestige or fame.
They went and stayed till the job was done,
Then returned home for their day in the sun.

He came into their yard one dreary day,
Hoping that he there from the rain could stay.
They gazed at him standing there in his miserableness
And quickly realized that he would be more than a guest.

He could not have been more than a few months old,
Standing there timidly yet trying to be bold.
Friendliness he showed with wagging tail,
Convinced that in their favor he would prevail.

They gladly welcomed him into their home,
Wondering from where he had so carelessly roamed.
No average pup was this lovely pooch,
They could not, therefore, name him “*****.”

They contemplated for more than an hour or two,
To reach a conclusion for a name that was new.
It could not be “Rover” or simply “Fido”,
Because of his class, it must be Phydeaux.

I goes to work each mornin’
I comes home every night.
I gets out pen and paper
And tries to sit and write.

The words they sometimes comes,
Sometimes they stays away.
I finds it quite annoying
I knows not what to say.

And then to my surprise,
A brilliant thought appears.
I tries to writes it down
Before it disappears.

I fergits with ease these daze,
It’s really not a chore.
The older that I grows,
I fergits more and more.


My spellin’s now improvin’
I guess it’s plane to see.
I finally learned to spell
The word “kertastrofee.”

So as I close this works of art
I hopes it’s brung you joys.
Pleeze don’t throw away!
Pleeze share with others this noise.

Where do you go when you know not the way?
What do you say when you know not what to say?
Do you keep stumbling along?  
Do you make up the words to the song?  

These questions are but few of many.
Sometimes there aren’t answers any.  
Some simply say, “Go with your gut!”
This often, however, will leave you in a rut.  

When you know not where to go,  
Nor the words to easily bestow,  
A solution is often found  
That is simple, yet profound.  

QUIETLY
               STAY
                           PUT!!!!

Redneck, they sometimes call me,
Though I do not understand why.
Simple is what some choose to be,
Instead of “pie in the sky”.

To stay at home and a quiet evening spend,
Instead of “painting the town”.
To not go after every modern trend,
To be content to just “hang around”.

Flashy clothes, I do not wear,
Overalls are my frequent attire.
For wing-tip shoes, I do not care,
Boots are all that I require.

“Old-fashioned” is another term,
That often to me is applied,
By those who choose never to learn
That “old” ways have not all died.

Being old - fashioned is not nearly so bad,
As many mistakenly think.
It is better far than holding modern fads,
That disappear quick as a blink.

Morality, truth, honor, respect,
Are some of those things not lost.
By those who will not be side-tracked,
By the modern day “new ideas” host.

Yes, I will continue to be “outdated”,
And with bad accusations not care.
These many years I have waited,
Now, my label with pride I do wear.

The banner of red, white, and blue,
Is a beautiful sight, ‘tis true.
Endeared by many, scorned by some,
Its place in history securely won.

Under this banner many proudly serve,
From duty they are sworn to never swerve.
In distant lands, away from those dear,
Overcoming hardship, privations, and fear.

Some may still ask why they go.
Why do they such devotion show?
“The answer is simple,” they proudly say,
“We would never have it any other way.”

Retirement is a time in life
When one should experience ease.
There should not be the constant strife
Of having to everyone please.

Maybe it is time to write a book,
Or travel to a distant land.
Perhaps one’s desire is to learn to cook
That dish that’s wonderfully grand.

If one’s wish is a new hobby to start
That brings him much delight,
Begin this dream and don’t hastily depart.
Keep the desired goal in sight.

When one reminds you that it can’t be done,
That you have been too long in the race,
Show them anew how you can run.
Do not let them your joy erase.

Oh, there will be obstacles that is for sure.
These simply make victory more sweet.
So hang in there and long endure.
Remove from your mind defeat.

And then when the race has been run,
And the finish line finally crossed,
No more criticism will you have to shun,
Satisfaction will not have been lost.

To say goodbye to one you love
As they depart to heaven above,
Though difficult it is, ‘tis a necessary thing,
That usually much sorrow and grief does bring.

How can I cope in the days ahead?
Is there something on which to focus instead?
Will I be able to carry on?
Why must my loved one now be gone?

Will I be able to ever again,
Not remember way back when?
Memories of our many times together,
Make it difficult to these current storms weather.

In a moment of sorrow, I did discover
One o’er me does continually hover.
Present is He in my moments of need
If I will only allow Him to lead.

Before I entered this stage of my life,
He already was aware of my coming strife.
More than able to comfort is He,
He hears my constant yearning and plea.

He’s promised that empty place to fill
As I yield consistently to His sovereign will.
Closer than a brother He’s promised to be,
What I must now do is by faith look and see!

And when my departure time finally arrives,
Much newness I’ll then realize.
In His presence, I can finally stand,
And enjoy a reunion that’s beyond grand!

With my loved one present in harmony above,
Surrounded in His eternal love,
Forever removed from earthly sorrows and pain,
Looking forward to that day is where I must remain!

They came from all over the land,
Some very young, others old.
There was in them all something grand,
That needs to be continually told.

That “something” that in them all was found,
That simply could not be obscured,
Was a devotion to duty and honor profound
That to the end endured.

In Asia, Europe, Africa, and more,
They answered their country’s call.
And there on foreign, distant shore
They courageously, silently did fall.

There still are some whose remains
The location of which only God is sure.
The freedoms that they died to obtain
Prayerfully will forever endure.

Gratitude is to them surely due,
If it could be properly expressed.
This, obviously, we cannot do
Except by public address.

The swimmin’ hole was very  inviting,
Hope the fish are all nonbiting!