A Flag
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| Remembering my mother This flag pole with flag has been embedded in the rock for several years on 231, going into Huntsville, AL. The flag has never tattered, so someone must just replace the flag on the pole. I often wonder who put it there. But, I understand the sentiment. There is nothing along this stretch of road for several miles. So, this flag up so high is a surprise, especially on a windy day. I have better pictures of the flag, especially the ones where it is flying straight, unfurled by wind today. I used this one so you can almost see how high it is. If it had occur to me, I would have captured the full height where the flag stood. I took this picture across four lanes and a wide median. You can see where the rock was cut to make the road. My mother was a WAC during WWII. My brother and niece were in the Air Force. My best friend, a major in the Air Force, Served in Vietnam, two tours, flying 200 missions over Vietnam as an electronic warfare officer, a Wild Weasel. Then, he returned for another tour, flying 24 hour missions. November 11th is also my brother's birthday. He was born on 11/11 and died 12/12. 2001 was not a good year for me. Not good for my brother, obviously. It makes me happy to see all the patriotic displays, flags in the median and hanging every where, lots of bunting, too. |
i love that someone put a flag there - AND they replace it! a very heart-felt thank you to all of your family members who did us all such an honour by providing their service.
ReplyDeletei hope that you have a wonderful Veteran's Day/Remembrance Day!
your friend,
kymber
Your flag memorial reminds me of a story with an Australian Flag and a military theme. When the floods passed through at the beginning of the year, Army was called in to search for bodies. During this process they found an Australian flag caught in some debris. They had it cleaned and presented it to the Australian Prime Minister.
ReplyDeleteAs the story was being explained by a relevant Military serviceman, to one of the communities hardest hit: the story behind the flag goes back into our miliatary past. To the soldiers in our armed forces, it was the Australian flag they saluted first thing in the morning and put away in the evening. It was part of their training and code of respect. Australian Flags were also taken onto many infamous battlefields.
So it was not surprising that when it came to Australian Flags, they were often jelously guarded by the various troops who flew them on the battle field. He explained handing the flag to the Prime Minister after it had been found on mission, was an exercise in respect towards the community who flew it. It represented those who had fallen and the bond we all shared.
I always get a tear in my eye when I think of that gesture of respect. National Flags are very powerful symbols because they represent the endeavours of those who make the sacrifices necessary to fly them.
I can respect your National Flag as much as I respect mine, because it represents so much more than a country. It represents people's hope in each other. :)
We have a saying for our fallen soldiers..."lest we forget". It's our way of remembering their sacrifice. I hope you had a memorable Veteran's/Rememberance day too.
Chris,
ReplyDeleteI suspect that the Australian flag is treated as respectfully as the American flag. We have that phrase, too,"lest we forget," as part of our heritage. Americans respect the Australians and their flag, also. Thanks for sharing the story of the fallen flag. It is touching.
Linda
kymber,
ReplyDeleteThanks, I will have a wonderful Memorial Day. I may shed a tear for my brother's birthday, but I am not one to go into a depressed funk over a dead person. I may shed a tear and go on. Until your posts, I did not know or remember that Canadians shared a Veterans Day/Memorial Day with the US.
great post! bless our veterans...past and present!!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful post and photo. I'm especially happy to hear that somebody takes care of that flag.
ReplyDeleteLindam,
ReplyDeleteI wish now I had not used the zoom. Someone must take care of it. I would like to get back behind it and see who lives there.
Dmarie,
Thank you. Great sentiment on this day.
Linda
ReplyDeleteBelieve me, somebody does. We had a flag right in the middle of our Chicago nighborhood that was in taters. It was a dedicated memorial to something- can't recall who or what. Shameful
LindaM,
ReplyDeleteAll this talk has made me curious as to is taking care of the flag, and who erected it. That IS a shame that someone put up a flag and did not bother to replace it or remove it. Of course, this flag is flown at night, not following the protocol of having it lit.