Beloved,
I hope you have a happy and glorious Memorial Day! Let us remember
who we have to thank for our freedom to be who we are, our soldiers.
I honor all who serve in our military no matter what position they hold.
My deepest wish is that we will soon no longer need our military to
defend us with their lives and instead use their patriotism to inspire others.
I feel saddened by the Americans who do not give respect to our fallen
soldiers AND the loved ones they have left behind. So many enjoy the
Freedom that they gave us with nary a thought of thanksgiving. Let us show
our appreciation by enjoying this beautiful weekend with our loved ones
in HONOR of our brothers and sisters in the military. Do not be afraid or
shy to verbally have a toast to them so that all may give thanks.
There are several stories I thought you might enjoy but still not knowing
how to maneuver the gifts of the computer, I cannot shrink this down.
Luke AFB is west of Phoenix and is rapidly
being surrounded by civilization that
complains about the noise from the base
and its planes, forgetting that it was there
long before they were.. A certain
lieutenant colonel at Luke AFB deserves
a big pat on the back. Apparently, an
individual who lives somewhere near
Luke AFB wrote the local paper
complaining about a group of F-16s
that disturbed his/her day at the mall.
When that individual read the response
from a Luke AFB officer, it must have
stung quite a bit.
The complaint:
‘Question of the day for Luke Air
Force Base:
Whom do we thank for the morning
air show? Last Wednesday, at precisely
9:11 A.M, a tight formation of four
F-16 jets made a low pass over
Arrowhead Mall, continuing west
over Bell Road at approximately
500 feet. Imagine our good fortune!
Do the Tom Cruise-wannabes feel
we need this wake-up call, or were
they trying to impress the cashiers
at Mervyns early bird special?
Any response would be appreciated.
The response:
Regarding ‘A wake-up call from
Luke’s jets’ On June 15, at precisely
9:12 a.m . , a perfectly timed four- ship
fly by of F-16s from the 63rd Fighter
Squadron at Luke Air Force Base
flew over the grave of Capt. Jeremy
Fresques. Capt Fresques was an Air
Force officer who was previously
stationed at Luke Air Force Base and
was killed in Iraq on May 30, Memorial Day.
At 9 a. m. on June 15, his family and
friends gathered at Sunland Memorial
Park in Sun City to mourn the loss of
a husband, son and friend. Based on
the letter writer’s recount of the fly
by, and because of the jet noise, I’m
sure you didn’t hear the 21-gun salute,
the playing of taps, or my words to
the widow and parents of Capt.
Fresques as I gave them their son’s
flag on behalf of the President of the
United States and all those veterans
and servicemen and women who
understand the sacrifices they have
endured..
A four-ship fly by is a display of
respect the Air Force gives to those
who give their lives in defense of
freedom. We are professional
aviators and take our jobs seriously,
and on June 15 what the letter writer
witnessed was four officers lining up
to pay their ultimate respects.
The letter writer asks, ‘Whom do we
thank for the morning air show’?
The 56th Fighter Wing will make
the call for you, and forward your
thanks to the widow and parents of
Capt Fresques, and thank them for
you, for it was in their honor that
my pilots flew the most honorable
formation of their lives.
Only 2 defining forces have ever
offered to die for you….Jesus Christ
and the American Soldier. One died
for your soul, the other for your
freedom.
Lt. Col. Grant L. Rosensteel, Jr.
USAF
…conversation overheard on the VHF Guard (emergency) frequency 121.5
MHz while flying from Europe to Dubai.
Iranian Air Defense Site: ‘Unknown
aircraft you are in Iranian airspace.
Identify yourself.’
Aircraft: ‘This is a United States
aircraft. I am in Iraqi airspace.’
Air Defense Site: ‘You are in
Iranian airspace. If you do not
depart our airspace we will launch
interceptor aircraft!’
Aircraft: ‘This is a United States
Marine Corps FA-18 fighter.
Send ’em up, I’ll wait!’
Air Defense Site: ( … total silence)
God bless our troops. There is
something about a Marine that
makes other countries listen to reason.
Really interesting, and I never knew this
little bit of history:
Tour boats ferry people out to the USS
Arizona Memorial in Hawaii every thirty
minutes. We just missed a ferry and had
to wait thirty minutes.. I went into a small
gift shop to kill time. In the gift shop, I
purchased a small book entitled,
“Reflections on Pearl Harbor ” by Admiral
Chester Nimitz.
Sunday, December 7th, 1941–Admiral
Chester Nimitz was attending a concert
in Washington D.C. He was paged and
told there was a phone call for him.
When he answered the phone, it was
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt
on the phone. He told Admiral Nimitz
that he (Nimitz) would now be the
Commander of the Pacific Fleet.
Admiral Nimitz flew to Hawaii to assume
command of the Pacific Fleet. He landed
at Pearl Harbor on Christmas Eve, 1941.
There was such a spirit of despair,
dejection and defeat–you would have
thought the Japanese had already won
the war. On Christmas Day, 1941,
Adm. Nimitz was given a boat tour of the
destruction wrought on Pearl Harbor
by the Japanese.. Big sunken battleships
and navy vessels cluttered the waters
every where you looked.
As the tour boat returned to dock, the
young helmsman of the boat asked,
“Well Admiral, what do you think after
seeing all this destruction?” Admiral
Nimitz’s reply shocked everyone within
the sound of his voice. Admiral Nimitz
said, “The Japanese made three of the
biggest mistakes an attack force could
ever make, or God was taking care of
America . Which do you think it was?”
Shocked and surprised, the young
helmsman asked, “What do mean by
saying the Japanese made the three
biggest mistakes an attack force ever
made?
Nimitz explained:
Mistake number one : the Japanese
attacked on Sunday morning. Nine
out of every ten crewmen of those
ships were ashore on leave. If those
same ships had been lured to sea
and been sunk–we would have lost
38,000 men instead of 3,800.
Mistake number two : when the
Japanese saw all those battleships
lined in a row, they got so carried away
sinking those battleships, they never
once bombed our dry docks opposite
those ships. If they had destroyed our
dry docks, we would have had to tow
every one of those ships to America to
be repaired. As it is now, the ships are
in shallow water and can be raised.
One tug can pull them over to the dry
docks, and we can have them repaired
and at sea by the time we could have
towed them to America . And I already
have crews ashore anxious to man
those ships.
Mistake number three : every drop of
fuel in the Pacific theater of war is in
top of the ground storage tanks five
miles away over that hill. One attack
plane could have strafed those tanks
and destroyed our fuel supply. That’s
why I say the Japanese made three
of the biggest mistakes an attack
force could make or God was taking
care of America .
I’ve never forgotten what I read in that
little book. It is still an inspiration as I
reflect upon it. In jest, I might suggest
that because Admiral Nimitz was a
Texan, born and raised in Fredricksburg ,
Texas — he was a born optimist. But
anyway you look at it — Admiral Nimitz
was able to see a silver lining in a
situation and circumstance where
everyone else saw only despair and
defeatism.
President Roosevelt had chosen the
right man for the right job. We
desperately needed a leader that could
see silver linings in the midst of the
clouds of dejection, despair and defeat.
There is a reason that our national motto
is, IN GOD WE TRUST.
Love and light
Mary Grace
www.ThewoundedChalice.com
www.IAmMaryGrace.com
http://www.waleson5.com/ marygrace.html
PO Box 403
Wales, MA 01081, USA
413-245-3977
PO Box 403
Wales, MA 01081, USA
413-245-3977