This is the Cavalry poem upon which the name of my blog is based:
Fiddlers Green
Author Unknown
Halfway down the trail to Hell,
In a shady meadow green
Are the Souls of all dead troopers camped,
Near a good old-time canteen.
And this eternal resting placeIs known as Fiddlers' Green.
Marching past, straight through to Hell
The Infantry are seen.
Accompanied by the Engineers,
Artillery and Marines,
For none but the shades of Cavalrymen
Dismount at Fiddlers' Green.
Though some go curving down the trail
To seek a warmer scene.
No trooper ever gets to Hell
Ere he's emptied his canteen.
And so rides back to drink again
With friends at Fiddlers' Green.
And so when man and horse go down
Beneath a saber keen,
Or in a roaring charge of fierce melee
You stop a bullet clean,
And the hostiles come to get your scalp,
Just empty your canteen,
And put your pistol to your head
And go to Fiddlers' Green.
(This poem is the most original version I can find, but the U. S. Army, under pressure to be politically correct, changed the last stanza a few years ago by removing the line about putting your pistol to your head)
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Friday, October 24, 2008
My New Granddaughter.
Hannah Lucille was born on October 7th, 2008, and is the most beautiful thing I've seen of late. So now I am a grandfather. If I didn't feel just a little bit old before, you can bet that I certainly do now.
Not that I feel OLD. Just older. When your children start to have children I guess you know that life is progressing toward that inevitable last day. Prior to that, you can sort of put that thought out of your head and pretend it doesn't pertain to you, only everyone else, LOL. But holding that little girl in my hands it is very evident that my own child, who is now a man, has grown past the point of needing my input into how to get to this point.
My son and my daughter-in-law have presented me with a gift. A grandchild. A blessing beyond measure. While not having been the best father in the world, it is like getting a second chance in my son's life. Maybe by being a good grandfather, I can make up for some of my shortcomings in the past as a father.
At least, I can surely hope so.
Mac
Not that I feel OLD. Just older. When your children start to have children I guess you know that life is progressing toward that inevitable last day. Prior to that, you can sort of put that thought out of your head and pretend it doesn't pertain to you, only everyone else, LOL. But holding that little girl in my hands it is very evident that my own child, who is now a man, has grown past the point of needing my input into how to get to this point.
My son and my daughter-in-law have presented me with a gift. A grandchild. A blessing beyond measure. While not having been the best father in the world, it is like getting a second chance in my son's life. Maybe by being a good grandfather, I can make up for some of my shortcomings in the past as a father.
At least, I can surely hope so.
Mac
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