All Purls. No Swine.
It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived. This is the quote attributed to General George S. Patton in his extemporaneous remarks at Boston’s Copely Plaza, on June 7, 1945. There’s no written record (on his part) of his saying such a thing,… Continue reading Quote of the Day: From ‘Old Blood and Guts’
LtCol Stuart Scheller’s service in the United States Marine Corps came to an end on December 23, 2021 when he was separated from that service with a General Discharge Under Honorable Conditions. Having served only seventeen of the requisite twenty years in order to qualify for a pension, he will not receive one. In addition,… Continue reading An Update on (Former) USMC LtCol Stuart Scheller
Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We… Continue reading Quote of the day–“for us the living”
The wise person acts but does not take credit. Leads, but does not rule--Lao Tze, Tao Te Ching and The Master, by residing in the Tao, sets an example for all beings. Because he doesn't display himself, people can see his light. Because he has nothing to prove, people can trust his words. Because he… Continue reading On Giving and Receiving Credit–For Those Brave Enough To Try
I am inspired by Seawriter's recent review of a biography of Major Donald J. Humphrey, written by Humphrey's son, to brush-up and re-post this jaunt down memory lane from early last year: From Sapper to Spitfire Spy: The WWII Biography of David Greville-Heygate DFC, by Sally-Anne Greville-Heygate is an endearing memoir of a father’s military… Continue reading A Book Recommendation–From Sapper to Spitfire Spy–And Some Notes on Diving For Pearls
"Medic!" That cry on the battlefield means a soldier is wounded. It also means someone will almost always respond, a normally-unarmed battlefield medic. This is the known and expected outcome of that call. But where did battlefield medicine start and how did evolve? Battlefield Medics: How Warfare Changed the History of Medicine, by Martin King,… Continue reading Book Review By Seawriter: Battlefield Medicine from Ancient Egypt to Modern Afghanistan
Here dead we lie we because we did not choose To live and shame the land from which we sprung. Life, to be sure, is nothing much to lose; But young men think it is, and we were young. —A.E. Houseman I think of Alfred Edward Houseman (1859-1936) as my “hometown” poet, because he was… Continue reading Uniquely Human Memories
When my father, who was quite a colorful character, died in 2007, he was the subject of several obituaries in the UK. This one, from the local newspaper, is my favorite because it’s the most personal and tells the most stories. Most of them referred to a verse from 1 Peter 2:17, which Dad, who considered himself an… Continue reading Occasional Quote of the Day–“Fear God, Honour the King”
This post was originally published on Ricochet in May of 2019. This year, in the midst of the Covid-19 epidemic, the commemoration of Memorial Day will be different, but no less heartfelt. Today is the nation’s officially designated Memorial Day. My mother-in-law never called it anything but Decoration Day, and never commemorated it on any day… Continue reading For the Gift I Have Received, I Am Truly Thankful–Memorial Day 2020
Season’s Greetings! I watched a segment on Fox News Something-Or-Other this morning which triggered action for me. The segment was about Luke’s Wings, a charity dedicated to providing the families of wounded, ill, and injured, service members the means to visit them during recovery and rehabilitation. A selfless and wonderful idea. What’s not to like about that? I… Continue reading Miles for Heroes: Please Consider