Good Morning!
Today’s
inspiration is also the quote of the day. A bit longer than
usual, but carrying a
special message and reminder.
“A Soldier’s
Christmas Poem”
The embers
glowed softly, and in their dim light,
I gazed
around the room and I cherished the sight.
My wife was
asleep, her head on my chest,
My daughter
beside me, angelic in rest.
Outside the
snow fell, a blanket of white,
Transforming
the yard to a winter delight.
The
sparkling lights in the tree, I believe,
Completed
the magic that was Christmas Eve.
My eyelids
were heavy, my breathing was deep,
Secure and
surrounded by love I would sleep,
In perfect
contentment, or so it would seem.
So, I slumbered,
perhaps I started to dream,
The sound
wasn’t loud, and it wasn’t too near,
But I
opened my eye when it tickled my ear.
Perhaps
just a cough, I didn’t quite know,
Then the
sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow.
My soul gave
a tremble, I struggled to hear,
And I crept
to the door just to see who was near.
Standing
out in the cold and the dark of the night,
A lone
figure stood, his face weary and tight.
A soldier,
I puzzled, some twenty years old
Perhaps a
Marine, huddled here in the cold.
Alone in
the dark, he looked up and smiled,
Standing
watch over me, and my wife, and my child.
“What are
you doing?” I asked without fear
“Come in
this moment, it’s freezing out here!
Put down
your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve,
You should
be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!”
For barely
a moment I saw his eyes shift,
Away from
the cold and the snow blown in drifts,
To the window
that danced with a warm fire’s light
Then he
sighed, and he said, “It’s really all right.
I’m out
here by choice. I’m
here every night.
It’s my
duty to stand at the front of the line,
That separates
you from the darkest of times.
No one had
to ask or beg or implore me.
I’m proud
to stand here like my fathers before me.
My Gramps
died at “Pearl on a day in December.”
The he
sighed, “That’s a Christmas ‘Gram always remembers.’
My dad
stood his watch in the jungles of ‘Nam
And now it
is my turn and so, here I am.
I’ve not
seen my own son in more than a while,
But my wife
sends me pictures, he’s sure got her smile.”
Then he
bent, and he carefully pulled from his bag,
The red,
white, and blue…an American flag.
“I can live
through the cold and the being alone.
Away from
my family, my house, and my home.
I can stand
at my post through the rain and the sleet,
I can sleep
in a foxhole with little to eat,
I can carry
the weight of killing another
Or lay down
my life with my sisters and brothers
Who stand
at the front against any and all,
To insure
for all time that this flag will not fall.”
“So, go
back inside,” he said, “and harbor no fright.
Your family
is waiting, and I’ll be all right.”
“But isn’t
there something I can do, at the least,
Give you
money,” I asked, “or prepare you a feast?
It seems
all too little for all that you’ve done,
For being
away from your wife and your son.”
Then, his
eye welled with a tear that held no regret,
“Just tell
us you love us and never forget
To fight
for our rights back at home while we’re gone.
To stand
your own watch, no matter how long.
For when we
come home, either standing or dead,
To know you
remember we fought and we bled
Is payment
enough, and with that we will trust,
That we
mattered to you as you mattered to us.”
~ Michael
Marks, Christmas 2000
To all our
troops and their
families, I send a special thanks that, because of your strength, my
family and
friends are enjoying a peace-filled Christmas.
Your Turn: Take a moment today and
send a note of
support and encouragement to members of our armed forces.
Today’s Affirmation: I am thankful for my
freedom.
