Thank you Mr President

I read this tonight. I think it speaks volumes, for itself. A visit with the President. I have one regret from my military service here in DC, that the opportunity did not present itself to salute my President.

Remember 9-11

This cross is being installed in Shanksville PA made of steel from the World Trade Center.

Many still remember. You can read about it here.

Going, going .....gone...back

Vacation time. Hooah! We took a couple of weeks of leave, though I didn't get out of town on Monday like I planned since my PFT got rescheduled. Not happy about my score so planning to retest...but that's another story.

We made a big circle going first to TN where we received some promising news regarding my mom's fight with cancer. Then onward to St. Louis. This was our first big drive that we have ever taken both girls on together. We packed up enough clothes for the four of us for two weeks and one of us for a year (pre-teen on board) threw the dog in the fend for herself and took off.

We had a full agenda. First we visited with some of my wife's extended family that were also in town. Then we hit Grant's Farm. I noticed some changes already since Imbev has bought out AB. First there was a sign about reduced operating hours coming. And then they had Imbev beer on tap for the free samples in the beer garden. I stuck with Amber Rock. I still have to ask myself when considering how AB has been bought out if there is nothing sacred anymore. It was a topic of conversation more than once in St. Louis with my friends there.

Grants Farm is still worth the stop. A mini zoo of sorts on property once owned by President Grant. It features a train ride through areas where animals run free.

Over the weekend we visited with friends in Red Bud Illinois. My friend pastors a congregation there. He was the associate minister when I did my internship in Cape Girardeau many years ago. They are the god-parents for my oldest daughter.

I always have this sense of wonder when I go visit with them. They have a very nice church, parsonage, and school right out in the middle of the corn fields south of Red Bud in an area simply called Prarie. Here once finds a confessional Lutheran church focused on the provision of God's Word and Sacraments and pastoral care as people work to live out their vocations in God's creation. There is a beauty and a simplicity there.



Back in St. Louis we hit the zoo one day and the science center and the jewel box the next.

The butterfly garden was incredible. The zoo has made some serious upgrades since we were last there. Some of the exhibits are so real that you feel as if you are standing in the midst of the jungle quietly peeking through the overgrowth at the animals.






We saw some fairly typical animals.


















And some less typical.













We hopped the train and made a mad dash around the zoo to arrive just in time to see this little cub being called in for lunch with his mother. So cute... at this age at least.
The zoo was great, even if I did have to pay 12 dolllars for four bottles of soda.

But admission was free.















The Jewel Box would have been disappointing except for the incredible water lilies out front.















I took my two girls through my old stomping grounds at Concordia Seminary.















And my wife fulfilled a dream of taking her children to a St. Louis landmark: Ted Drews. (and White Castle). Note: we all survived White Castle.


Of course we stopped at the world famous ARCH! on the way out of town.




We then drove north into central Illinois to visit my first parish, a dual parish of Trinity Lutheran in La Rose and St. John's Lutheran in Washburn. We hit the area just in time for dinner at Woody's and desert for the eyes as a huge thunderstorm rolled in from the west just at sunset. I snapped this photo sitting on the console in the middle of the car with my head sticking out the sun roof as my wife drove us into Varna.

Some things you just gotta do in the country.

Our days in Varna were like stepping back in a time machine. We stayed with some old friends in Varna Illinois. A very small town, but there are signs of growth here. Some new housing and the local grainery has expanded 5 fold. I enjoyed walking out early one morning to the local Casey's to get coffee and saying howdy to folks I hadn't seen in many a year. Some of them even recognized me.




I took my oldest daughter on a five mile walk down a gravel county road in the midst of the corn fields when we startled these black birds. Felt like a scene from the movie Day of the Bird there for a minute.


We had an old fashioned potluck with my former flock. Some of the folks looked like they hadn't aged a day. We laughed and shared stories and memories as well as expression how we missed some of those who had passed on.


I even met the pet squirrel of the folks we were staying with. Our host took one look at this photo and exclamed, "he's cute. Almost makes me want to like him."

This is Trinity Lutheran Church in LaRose. The place I preached my first sermon as a pastor. (They had the early service on Sunday mornings.)

This is St. John's Lutheran Church in Washburn IL. I was ordained here and my oldest daughter was baptized here by the same pastor I visited in Prairie Illinois.

Both churches haven't changed a bit. I feel like I could have walked in from years ago heading for my office.

And of course, before we left town, we introduced our youngest daughter to our nightly ritual when we lived in Washburn. We walked five blocks from the parsonage (across the street from the church) to the local Caseys and bought the girls a cookie.

Time catches up with us all, but in some places it seems to move a bit slower is all.

If we maintain our faith in God, love of freedom, and superior global air power, the future [of the US] looks good.

— General Curtis Lemay

Hero

I had the incredible privilege of conducting the service for one of our nation's heroes from WWII, Lt Gen Gordon Graham. By the end of WWII he was a triple ace. But he didn't stop there. He continued to serve our nation in a long career including Vietnam. His list of accomplishments and service is profound. You just have to read it for yourself. You can read about his amazing service here.

Truly the field of Arlington are fields of honor because of the service and sacrifice of those who rest there.

Freedom is NOT FREE!

On this Independence Day -- we remember Freedom is not free.

Mikey Monsoor sacrificed himself on 29 September 2006 that his brothers in arms could remain alive - free. He could have saved himself. He saved hs comrads, throwing himself on a live grenade.

He was awarded the Medal of Honor. He is the fourth in the War on Terror to receive the award.

View his memorial service here.

   
 From this day
 to the ending of the world,
    But we in it shall be remembered-
    We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
    For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
    Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile,
    This day shall gentle his condition;

And gentlemen in England now-a-bed
Shall think themselves accurs'd they were not here,

    And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
    That fought with us upon Saint Crispin's day.

William Shakespeare
King Henry V

The citation for the award of the Medal of Honor to Master at Arms 2nd Class Michael A. Monsoor:

The President of the United States, in the name of the Congress, takes pride in presenting the Medal of Honor, posthumously, to Master At Arms Second Class, Sea, Air and Land, Michael A. Monsoor, United States Navy. For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty while serving as Automatic Weapons Gunner for Naval Special Warfare Task Group Arabian Peninsula, in support of Operation IRAQI FREEDOM on 29 September 2006.

As a member of a combined SEAL and Iraqi Army sniper overwatch element, tasked with providing early warning and stand-off protection from a rooftop in an insurgent-held sector of Ar Ramadi, Iraq, Petty Officer Monsoor distinguished himself by his exceptional bravery in the face of grave danger. In the early morning, insurgents prepared to execute a coordinated attack by reconnoitering the area around the element's position. Element snipers thwarted the enemy's initial attempt by eliminating two insurgents. The enemy continued to assault the element, engaging them with a rocket-propelled grenade and small arms fire. As enemy activity increased, Petty Officer Monsoor took position with his machine gun between two teammates on an outcropping of the roof. While the SEALs vigilantly watched for enemy activity, an insurgent threw a hand grenade from an unseen location, which bounced off Petty Officer Monsoor's chest and landed in front of him. Although only he could have escaped the blast, Petty Officer Monsoor chose instead to protect his teammates. Instantly and without regard for his own safety, he threw himself onto the grenade to absorb the force of the explosion with his body, saving the lives of his two teammates. By his undaunted courage, fighting spirit, and unwavering devotion to duty in the face of certain death, Petty Officer Monsoor gallantly gave his life for his country, thereby reflecting great credit upon himself and upholding the highest traditions of the United States Naval Service.

Long night of music

I took my family and an airman from the office to a concert taping of the Air Force band at the Strathmore with some notable celebrity performers that will be aired on Veterans Day later this year. My favorite artist was a new sensation of the ukulele Jake Shimabukuro (yes, I said ukulele - you gotta hear it to believe it). He is incredible. He brought the house down with humor as well during the taping teasing himself with some Don Ho type musical performance on the instrument while they were working with the sound system. Clint Black was also there. He sang "The Shoes You Are Wearing". Then Patti Labelle sang "I Have a New Attitude". She was a riot when she tried to convince the sound manager that a second take wasn't necessary. She also sang a slower song about being there for others. Very moving.

I think what meant the most to me where two aspects of the program. The night was long as there were performances and retakes to get the segments right for TV publication. Between the sets while they reset the stage and so forth, the performers gave some personal words of appreciation to what our men and women in uniform do and while we were honored to have them do this for us, they expressed how honored they were to be included. The second element were tributes read by Cliff Robertson to one veteran of each service. We have a Navaho code talker there, a man who spent 8.5 years as a POW in Vietnam from the Navy, a young airman who lost a limb in the desert who has not let his injury stop him, a lady who served as a nurse in World War II with the Army, and an older lady who served in port security in Operation Desert Storm in the Coast Guard. She was sitting right across from me, and after the concert production I was honored to have the opportunity to speak with her and thank her for her service.

Mountain Trek

While visiting with my mom last week in East TN, I took the opportunity to visit some of the mountains in the area. Before the heat wave rolled in, I hiked an access trail that connects up with the Appalachian Trail after hiking the chimneys in the Smokies. It was hot though, and the haze, which unfortunately these days is more the product of pollution than the natural product of the Smokey Mountains, was quite evident.

The trail itself starts out fairly tame and crosses a vigorous mountain stream three times before turning up hill toward the crest of the mountains. It turns into quite a climb once you cross the third bridge.


I took time to photograph some of the water falls at the crossings, something a number of folks were doing. The day was cloudy, an excellent day to take pictures of water falls.






























Near the crest of the mountain, the first Rhododendron blooms began to show themselves. Another couple of weeks should show them in full swing. On the mountain crest, the sheer rock face was daunting but the aged granite has numerous handholds for climbing. If you want to truly get a view of the surrounding mountains one has to climb the rock face. There is a trail that goes up the side, but it is currently closed to allow recuperation from over use. Still yet I and some other visitors discovered several folks on the trail. One of the park's rangers confronted them and we heard them explain they were from France and said they could not read the sign that was in in English. They spoke fairly good English though. Go figure.


After reaching the summit of the Chimney's I turned my sight to hike up the AT, another three miles straight up the mountain. I was about 3/4 of the way when I saw a strange object in the middle of the path in front of me -- a big pile of pooh. The only thing in that area that would be big enough to leave such a mark is four legged, black, furry, and I could conceivable be considered part of its food chain on a bad day. I went on though, figuring it would have moved on. The trail became quite rough and turned into a creek bed that one had to follow for 1/2 a mile or so. As I turned a bend in the creek, guess who was getting a drink? And guess who saw me looking at her. Momma bear was there with her couple of cubs. I didn't take time to get out my camera as I decided I had come close enough to the AT. Bear in front of me. Bear scat behind me. And me -- right in the middle of this bear's ranging terroritory. Hmmm. Downhill was looking better all of a sudden. So I didn't make the AT. I find as I get older I err more on the side of caution.















I was glad to see the Evergreen trees making a come back. 20 years ago, a friend of mine and I were exploring the Blue Ridge Parkway to discover on top of Mt. McKinley a veritable skeleton forest of dead evergreens killed by a combined assault of pollution and a particular aphid. Today, one can still see the remains of the devastation, but new life is showing in the evergreen population.














There is a story about these mountains that explain why Tennessee hill folk didn't used to wear shoes. When the first settlers came over the mountains from North Carolina into the frontier of Tennessee, they were near the tops of the mountains when the clouds parted and the voice of God (who went as a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night before the children of Israel) thundered out -- "Take off your shoes. You are on holy ground."

Look What I Missed

I was out of town this week visiting with my mother who has been ill for some time. This link is to some video of one of the Air Force firing party from the USAF Honor Guard standing tight for an honors ceremony at one of our funerals, when a huge thunder storm rolled through. You can see the video here.

Remember Part 3

My family and I visited section 60 at Arlington National Cemetery for Memorial Day. This is where most of the OIF (Operation Iraqi Freedom) casualties are buried. I did a funeral here for an Air Force EOD airman in April as well as one last fall for an OSI airman. This place is very special ground for me as I have trod some of the same sand as these now lost to us. For some reason these words come to mind as a tribute as we remember:


Verse 4 -- National Anthem

O thus be it ever,

When free men shall stand

Between their loved homes

And the war's desolation;

Blest with vict'ry and peace,

May the heav'n rescued land

Praise the Power that hath made

And preserved us a nation!

Then conquer we must,

When our cause it is just,

And this be our motto,

"In God is our trust!"

And the star-spangled banner

In triumph shall wave

O'er the land of the free

And the home of the brave.

Remember Part 2

Here are some stories to ponder and reflect upon.

A day at Arlington to Remember Heroes

Laid to Rest

Our Nation's Most Hallowed Ground

It Began as a Springtime Holiday.

If You Visit Arlington

Or take a VIRTUAL TOUR OF ARLINGTON CEMETERY

"They don't have any of these Hamlet-like moments of indecision
about whether America is worth defending or a good country,"

"We need somebody in our culture that's ready to rock and roll, do or die, otherwise we're doomed."

--Peter Collier, author of "Medal of Honor" .
a book of profiled of the 138 Medal of Honor recipients.

Remember

This weekend is Memorial Day Weekend. Today, I assisted with the placement of flags in an area of Arlington National Cemetery known as Chaplain's hill. It was a moving experience to be able to say that I had the privilege to render this honor.



Memorial Day was proclaimed May 5, 1868 by General John Logan, then the Commander of the Grand Army of the Republic. His general Order #11 included these words:

"...If other eyes grow dull, other hands slack, and other hearts cold in the solemn trust, ours shall keep it well as long as the light and warmth of life remain to us.

Let us, then, at the time appointed gather around their sacred remains and garland the passionless mounds above them with the choicest flowers of spring-time; let us raise above them the dear old flag they saved from dishonor; let us in this solemn presence renew our pledges to aid and assist those whom they have left among us a sacred charge upon a nation's gratitude, the soldier's and sailor's widow and orphan..."

Yesterday, I had the privilege of providing the invocation for the Memorial Day Remembrance for the Department of Housing and Urban Development. It was a beautiful day, with ceremony outside in full view of all around. I shared these words with those who gathered to honor those who have served:

Almighty God
as we gather together today in this continuing time of struggle and conflict
to remember all who served and sacrificed that our nation might always be free, grant that this time will be a time of remembrance and reflection

as we remember, grant us wisdom

as we remember, grant us hope

as we remember, grant us resolve

as we remember those who served with honor,

grant that we may be inspired to such service

as we remember those who go forth at our nation’s call,

may we recall their families who remain behind

as we remember the valor and the glory,

may we remember the wounded and the healing.

as we remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice,

grant that we never forget their loved ones who grieve.

today as we remember the necessary cost for freedom, we are bold to pray:
grant us victory, may freedom endure,
and may our children and our children’s children know peace.

Running with the Old Dogs

Now I have to admit, this old dog enjoys being able to keep up with the younger dogs in the pack, but this guy is Hooah!

Most of those young dogs I've been running with are army strong. We're trying to get a weekly run from our office out to the Washington Memorial and back, about 4.5 miles. Walk in the park as they say. (Though is it one big park :)

This guy on the other hand: Not so Hooah.