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updated on 10-09-02
Tribute to the American Flag That is all it is -- just a piece of cloth. But when a little breeze comes along, it stirs and comes to life, and flutters and snaps in the wind, all red and white and blue! And then you realize that no other piece of cloth could be like it.
Carol Jean Preuss, Grand Flag Bearer 1949
Cedar Assembly No. 28, Washington state
(given at the 1949 WA/ID/AK Grand Assembly)I did not know it was so dear,
Till under alien skies
A sudden vision of it near
Brought tears into my eyes.
To wander down the crooked street
Of some far foreign town;
No friend admid the crowd you meet
Strange faces peer and frown;
To turn a corner suddenly,
And ah! so brave and fair
To spy that banner floating free
Upon the foreign air!
In those far regions, wonder-strewn,
No sight so good to see --
My country's blessed flag, my own,
So dear, so dear to me.
It has your whole life wrapped up in it -- the meals you eat; the time you spend with your family; the kind of things you learn at school; the strange and wonderful thoughts you get in church on Sunday.
Those stars in it -- they make you feel just as free as the stars in the wide, deep night. And those stripes -- they are bars of blood to any dictator who would try to change this way of life.
Just a piece of cloth, that is all -- until you put your soul into it, and give it meaning. Then it is a symbol of liberty, and decency, and fair-dealing for everyone. It is just a piece of cloth until we breathe life into it; until we make it stand for everything we believe in, and refuse to live without!
At this time I would like to ask each and everyone of you to pay tribute to this wonderful banner for which countless thousands have lost their lives on the field of battle to preserve it and our country's liberty and independence for us and for generations to come.
"That Ragged Old Flag"
(written by Johnny Cash)I walked through a County Court House square
On a park bench an old man was sitting there.
I said, "Your old Court House is kinda run down."
He said, "No, it will do for our little town."
I said, "Your old flag pole is leaning a little bit.
And that's a ragged old Flag you've got hanging on it."
He said, "Have a seat", and I sat down.
"Is this the first time you've been to our little town?"
I said, "I think it is." He said, "I don't like to brag,
But we're kinda proud of that ragged old Flag."
"You see, we got a little hole in that flag there
When Washington took it across the Delaware.
And, it got powder-burns, the night Francis Scott Key
Sat watching it, writing 'Oh Say Can You See'.
And it got a bad rip in New Orleans
With Packingham and Jackson tuggin' at its seams."
"And it almost fell at the Alamo
Beside the Texas flag, but she waved on through.
She got cut with a sword at Chancellorsville
And she got cut again at Shiloh Hill.
There was Robert E. Lee, Beauregard, and Bragg,
And the south wind blew hard on that ragged old Flag."
"On Flanders Field in World War I
She got a big hole from a Bertha Gun.
She turned blood red in World War II
She hung limp and low by the time it was through.
She was in Korea and Vietnam.
She went where she was sent by her Uncle Sam."
"She waved from our ships upon the briny foam,
And now they've about quit waving her here back home.
In her own good land she's been abused;
She's been burned, dishonored, denied and refused."
"And the government for which she stands
is scandalized throughout the land.
And she's getting threadbare and wearing thin,
But she's in good shape for the shape she's in.
'Cause she's been through the fire before
and I believe she can take a whole lot more."
"So we raise her up every morning,
Take her down every night.
We don't let her touch the ground
And we fold her up right.
On second thought I DO like to brag,
Cause I'm mighty proud of that ragged old Flag."
Remember Me? Some people call me Old Glory, others call me the Star Spangled Banner, but whatever they call me, I am your flag, the flag of The United States of America. Remember Old Glory
written by Lucy (Burbank) Meredith
Petaluma Assembly #6, Petaluma, California
I remember some time ago people lined up on both sides of the street to watch the parade and naturally, I was always there, proudly waving in the breeze.
When your daddy saw mw coming, he immediately removed his hat and placed it over his heart. Remember? And you, I remember you standing there straight as a soldier. You didn't have a hat but you were giving the right salute.
Remember your little sister? Not to be outdone, she was saluting the same as you, with her hand over her heart. Remember?
What happened? I'm still the same old flag. Oh, I've added a few stars since you were a boy, and a lot more blood has been shed since those parades of long ago. But I don't feel as proud as I used to. When I come down your street, you just stand there with your hands in your pockets. I may get a small glance but then you look away.
I see the children running around and shouting. They don't even seem to know who I am. I saw one man take off his hat and look around. He didn't see anybody else with his hat off so he quickly put his back on. Is it a sin to be patriotic? Have you forgotten what I stand for and where I've been? Anzio, Normandy, Omaha Beach, Guadalcanal, Korea and Vietnam.
Take a look at the memorial honor rolls some time. Look at the names of those who never came back in order to keep this republic free. One nation under God. When you salute me, you are saluting them.
Well, it won't be long until I'll be coming down your street again. So, when you see me, stand straight, place your right hand over your heart. I'll salute you by waving back. And I'll know that you remembered.
Do you have a tribute to the American flag? Then please take a few minutes and email it to me! Please identify the author, if known, with name, assembly name & number, jurisdiction, etc. If the author is an active Rainbow girl, her last name will not be used. Author's credit will be by their name and jurisdiction ONLY, unless otherwise specified.
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