This Plainted Land

O plaintive for plainted skies for plaintive waves of plaint, for plaintly mountains plaint above the plaintive plaint. O plainted land! O plaintive land! Plaint shed His complaint on thee And plaint thy plaint with plaint From plaint to plaintive plaint. A review of the American patriotic hymn "America the Beautiful" with apologies to those … Continue reading This Plainted Land →

Waiting for Fireworks at Antietam National Battlefield

The orchestra begins “O, say can you see,” and in the dusk those boys rise again from the tree line and form in rows sung into them with “Mine eyes have seen the glory.” Ranks waver and writhe like banners over rise and hollow. And boys begin to fall. Gaps appear and close, a fatal … Continue reading Waiting for Fireworks at Antietam National Battlefield →

In the Morning We Did Not Take It.

“We’ll take it in the morning,” the Colonel said. He stood in the trench and periscoped over the rampart. Shells exploded out on the wasteland between his revetments and the bastion city. There were prone figures out there, some moving a bit. Some not, some in bloody pools. In the morning we did not take … Continue reading In the Morning We Did Not Take It. →

Has Freedom Become Just Another Word.

Have you ever attended or participated in a Ceremony that troubles you? Today I did. Today is the day in the USA when we go to cemeteries and stand along parade routes to honor those who have served and especially those who have fallen in their service to our country. The little cemetery down the … Continue reading Has Freedom Become Just Another Word. →