Friday, August 26, 2016

Blessing in Pink

Life doesn’t always lead us where we plan. It’s filled with turns, detours, dead-ends, and new paths. When we’re on the road and it leads us in a different direction, we tend to fear what is ahead of us. However, many times those bumps in the road end up being a blessing. I know I’ve had my share of bumps in the road and even a few dead-ends but many times they ended up being the best thing that could have happened. Some of the changes haven’t come without heartache but many have brought happiness and pure joy.

In the spring of 2016, my life took a surprising turn. I learned that my son and his girlfriend were going to have a baby. Talk about a surprise and twist of events! Having a baby is an amazing event.  Regardless of the situation, it represents a new life. It meant that I will support and love the little one throughout his/her entire life. It meant that my heart was filled with love in anticipation of the new life, my grandson or granddaughter.

What will it be? It is unusual today that parents wait until the birth of their baby before learning the gender. After all, you have to get the nursery and layette ready! It’s popular to have gender reveal parties where you gather family and close friends to share in your “reveal”. The couple chose Sunday, August 21, 2016, to be their “Chuggies for Huggies” gender reveal.  What was unique with this reveal was that neither mommy or daddy knew the gender until we all did.  How exciting was that?  As they took the forks to their balloons that they would individually pop, we all held our breath. Boy? Girl? Did anyone really care? Would anyone be disappointed?

POP….out poured tons of hot pink glitter spraying all over mommy, daddy, and big sister. The look on their faces was hard to read. Were they all hoping for a baby boy? Were they disappointed?  Everyone was hollering “awww, a baby girl!”  The room was full of excitement. No one was disappointed, maybe a tad bit in shock but not disappointed. What will daddy do with a baby girl? He is going to teach her how to play soccer, take her to Daddy-Daughter dances, and learn how to braid hair.  Indeed, a beautiful blessing in pink.

Tuesday, April 26, 2016

36" of Terror



           “Just wait until your father gets home!”  I wish I had a dollar for every time I heard those words growing up.  I would be a millionaire.  Funny thing is, my father did come home but not a word was said about my imperfect behavior that took place that day.  You see, back when I grew up, mothers threatened their children throughout the day but when the father walked through the door, it was daddy’s time to relax after a hard day at work. It was also our time to shine as the perfect children.
          I don’t remember what I had done to deserve that threat and I’m pretty sure that whatever I did was at the instigation of my older brother. After all, he was the tormenter and I was the innocent younger sister. Regardless of what I had done to deserve the threat, I was chased throughout the house with “thirty-six inches of terror”. Those inches happen to be a thick yardstick and I have to admit, I was deathly afraid of getting smacked with it.  The smack never came, however, and after several hundred times of being threatened with it, I finally realized it was just a threat. Whenever I see a thick yardstick, I get a smile on my face.



Monday, May 25, 2015

Farewells and Goodbyes




Two young men donned their uniforms, said goodbye to their families, and boarded the train. One, a young man who worked with his hands, enlisted in the Army Air Corp and headed to Scott Air Force Base to attend radio school training. The other, an artist/musician, traveled to the east coast after being drafted.  What they had in common was that they were about to embark on a journey that would forever change the lives of the entire world. There is a reason that men and women such as these were called “The Greatest Generation”.

The young man who worked with his hands would eventually be stationed in the South Pacific as a radio operator for the Army Air Corp, the predecessor of the United States Air Force. He spent time on Christmas Island, Easter Island, Palau, Peleliu, and Okinawa where one of the largest battles in the South Pacific was fought.   The following is an excerpt from a letter this man wrote on September 2, 1945, while stationed in Okinawa: “While I was at Peleliu, I learned of Tony’s (friend from back home) death on Okinawa. It seems rather strange but I am now located about two hundred yards from the Sixth Marine Cemetery. From our area, we can see the white crosses gleaming across the way. This morning I visited the cemetery and located Tony’s grave. What kept me from crying out loud, I’ll never know but as I was kneeling before his cross, my eyes and heart were filled with tears and all I could think of were those happy days before the war. If more people felt as I do now, all future wars would surely be avoided.”  This man returned home, married the woman he fell in love with through letters written back and forth during the war, raised a family, and continued his service to our country for twenty-five years. He proudly displayed the flag every morning and removed it before sunset each evening. If you were asked (or allowed) to do either for him, it was considered an honor.

After being drafted and going through a thorough background check of both he and his family, the artist/musician was given the assignment to design a large-scale model of Omaha and Juno beaches in German occupied France. These models were used to plan the D-Day Invasion of Normandy in June of 1944. The invasion was an attempt to stop the threat of Nazi control throughout Europe. Ironically, this same young man was handed a rifle and found himself taking part in that battle. He was part of the second wave to storm the same beaches that he himself had made a model design. He was later quoted by saying “many of my friends drowned that morning as the first wave was stacked up on the beach and the second wave had to swim to the beach”.  After viewing “Saving Private Ryan” some fifty years later, the man stated “the film was very accurate”.  This man returned home to his wife, welcomed a son nine months later, went on to father four more children, and worked as an independent commercial artist until his retirement.

These two young men were the fortunate ones to survive the war and return home to their families. Many lost their lives including one young man, a 23-year-old baseball player from the Midwest who stepped on a land mine in Normandy and never made it home to his family. It took four long years for his body to return to United States soil. His final resting place is Camp Butler National Cemetery, Springfield, Illinois.

The men and women of World War II risked and sacrificed their lives for our freedom. Some didn’t make it home, some were away from their families for four long years, and some were wounded and physically unable to lead a normal life once they did return home. As we go about our day, remember those who risked and sacrificed their lives so that we can walk freely upon American ground. These men and women took honor in our flag. To them, the flag was a symbol of American freedom; fly it with pride. 

Journalist Tom Brokaw was quoted in his book “The Greatest Generation” "it is, I believe, the greatest generation any society has ever produced." These men and women didn’t fight for fame.  They willingly fought because they loved their country and it was “the right thing to do”.  

Today, let’s honor those who fought for our freedom and led the way for us to speak without fear of retaliation, practice religious freedom without fear of persecution, live without fear of attacks from our neighbors throughout the world, and freedom to own our own homes, seek employment to support our families, and obtain an education to better or lives.

If you knew or know at WWII veteran, consider yourself blessed!  Thank them as well as any military person serving in any capacity yesterday or today.  We fight a different battle today but none like the ones fought in WWII that changed our lives forever.


In honor of:
Chester R. Starcevic (Technical Sergeant, 148th Army Airway Communications)    

My Father

Photo taken in front of his mother’s home in Peoria, Illinois





Orlin E. Clarquist (Staff Sergeant, 5th Army Corp Engineers)  

 A man I wish I had known, my father-in-law
 
Photo taken in Ireland during the time he was building the models of Omaha and Juno beaches




In memory of:

Donald L. McDonough (Sergeant (Infantry Ranger), United States Army
Killed in action, Normandy, France; July 27, 1944  

My mother’s brother and my namesake

I have my grandmother’s wallet and this picture is still in that wallet. She carried it with her for 44 years until her death in 1988.