(I was out of state last weekend and, therefore, combined last Sunday's Remember post with today)

"If a man does his best, what else is there?" ~ George Patton


Jennifer Cole, 34, CA
Paul Conlon, Jr., 21, MA
Donald Garwile, 29, MS
James Hale, 23, IL
Nickolas Lee Hopper, 27, IL
Janelle King, 23, CA
Juan Lopez-Castaneda, 19, AZ
John Mattox, 23, TX
Daniel McGuire, 40, MA
Anthony Mihalo, 23, IL
David Paquet, 26, MD
Kristopher Rodgers, 29, MI
George Stanciel, 40, MS
Travis Stottlemyer, 20, PA
Brian Studer, 28, MN
David Todd, Jr., 36, LA
Jacob Toves, 27, CA

Remember. . .

It is the Soldier, not the reporter who has given us the freedom of the press;
It is the Solder, not the poet who has given us the freedom of speech;
It is the Soldier, not the campus organizer who has given us freedom to demonstrate
It is the Soldier-- Who salutes the flag; Who serves beneath the flag; and whose coffin is draped by the flag, Who allows the protester to burn the flag.


Anthony Carbullido, 25, Guam
Michael Ferschke, Jr., 22, TN
Kenneth Gibson, 25, VA
Jaime Gonzalez, Jr., 40, TX
Adam McKiski, 21, IL
Stewart Trejo, 25, MY
Jose Ulloa, 23, NY

Hungry Wolves

A friend sent me the following story:

One evening an old Cherokee told his grandson about a battle that goes on inside people. He said, "My son, the battle is between two 'wolves' inside of us all. One is Evil. It is...
anger, resentment, self-pity, envy, jealousy, regret, greed, arrogance, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.
The other is Good. It is...joy, peace, love, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion and faith." The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, 'Which wolf wins?'
The old Cherokee simply replied...
'THE ONE YOU FEED.'

Remember. . .

"A man's feet should be planted in his country, but his eyes should survey the world." ~ George Santayana


David Badie, 23, IL
Ryan Baumann, 24, MD
Seteria Harris Brown, 22, FL
Jair De Jesus Garcia, 29, CA
Kevin Dickson, 21, MO
Michael Girdano, 23, PA
Gary Henry,34, IN
Timothy Hutton, 21, MT
Holley James, 24, NC
Garrett Lawton, 31, W.VA
Ian McVey, 23, MA
Jonathan Menke, 22, IN
Brian Miller, 37, IN
Andre Mitchell, 25, NY
William Mulvihill, 20, KS
Ronald Schmidt, 18, KS

What is Love?

A friend sent me the following e-mail:

"What does love mean?

A group of professional people posed this question to a group of 4 to 8-year-olds, "What does love mean?" The answers they got were broader and deeper than anyone could have imagined. See what you think:

"When my grandmother got arthritis, she couldn't bend over and paint her toenails anymore. So my grandfather does it for her all the time, even when his hands got arthritis too. That's love."
Rebecca - age 8

"When someone loves you, the way they say your name is different. You know that your name is safe in their mouth."
Billy - age 4

"Love is when a girl puts on perfume and a boy puts on shaving cologne and they go out and smell each other."
Karl - age 5

"Love is when you go out to eat and you give somebody most of your French fries without making them give you any of theirs."
Chrissy - age 6

"Love is what makes you smile when you're tired."
Terri - age 4

"Love is when my mommy makes coffee for my daddy and she takes a sip before giving it to him, to make sure the taste is OK."
Danny - age 7

"Love is what's in the room with you at Christmas if you stop opening presents and listen,"
Bobby - age 5

"If you want to learn to love better, you should start with a friend whom you hate."
Nikka - age 6

"There are two kinds of love. Our love, God's love. But God makes both kinds of them."
Jenny - age 4

"Love is when you tell a guy you like his shirt, then he wears it everyday."
Noelle - age 7

"Love is like a little old woman and a little old man who are still friends even after they know each other so well."
Tommy - age 6

"My mommy loves me more than anybody. You don't see anyone else kissing me to sleep at night."
Clare - Age 5

"Love is when mommy gives daddy the best piece of chicken."
Elaine - age 5

"Love is when mommy sees daddy smelly and sweaty and still says he is handsomer than Robert Redford."
Chris - age 8

"Love is when your puppy licks your face even after you left him alone all day."
Mary Ann - age 4

"I know my older sister loves me because she gives me all her old clothes and has to go out and buy new ones."
Lauren - age 4

"I let my big sister pick on me because my Mom says she only picks on me because she loves me. So I pick on my baby sister because I love her."
Bethany - age 4

"When you love somebody, your eyelashes go up and down and little stars come out of you."
Karen - age 7

"Love is when mommy sees daddy on the toilet and she doesn't think it's gross."
Mark - age 6

"You really shouldn't say 'I love you' unless you mean it. But if you mean it, you should say it a lot. People forget,"
Jessica - age 8

Remember. . .

"Gold is good in it's place, but living, brave, patriotic men are better than gold." ~ Abraham Lincoln

My deceased soldiers for this past week did not die in Iraq or in Afghanistan. However, they died of their injuries sustained in Iraq. At least their struggles are over and they, hopefully, have found peace. At least they also died in America with their family members present.

Faoa Apineru, 31, CA
James McHale, 31, MT

I recently finished Final Salute by Jim Sheeler. The book chronicles Major Steve Beck, who is a casualty notification officer, as he notifies families of their Marine's death. Although the book is definitely difficult, especially since most of the families have been mine, I think every American should read it and know what happens when a simple knock at the door occurs.