Memorial Day 2006, the Vietnam Memorial Wall, and recollections.

[Botany]

Where has the time gone? That small town in Pennsylvania where as kids, a game of "kick the can" brought
in 20 + kids from the neighborhood to play in those long twilight hours of summer. The older kids
would hang out and play 45s of the Beach boys, Beatles, & the Stones afterwards and they younger kids
milled around the edges of the "cool teens." For those view hours we had it all; with some Dad's Root Beer, Synder's
of Berlin Potato Chips, and a pack of Pall Malls which the teens posed with more than smoked our little lives
were damn good.

Jim was the oldest of the group he left for Paris Island and Boot Camp in the summer of 1969 and we continued
on the group. Letters from Vietnam from Jim were read and discussed along with pictures of him holding a
Playboy aboard a Hospital Ship where he was recovering from mortar shrapnel he had taken.

Then that one awful day in August. Some friends and I came out of the woods by our houses and looked down the
street to see a marine car parked at Jim's parents house. I looked down to see a marine officer and a the local
Episcopal Rector walking back to the car. Even at a very young age I knew Jim was dead and things would never be the same.

Funny I don't think of Jim and that town much anymore but when I go to D.C. I feel a need to go to the wall and
see his name and just touch it.

With all the awful news coming out about Iraq daily I would just like to say to all vets THANK YOU and to Jim
you will always be forever young.

(r. stewart/j.cregan/k.savigar)

May the good lord be with you
Down every road you roam
And may sunshine and happiness
Surround you when youre far from home
And may you grow to be proud
Dignified and true
And do unto others
As youd have done to you
Be courageous and be brave
And in my heart youll always stay
Forever young, forever young
Forever young, forever young

May good fortune be with you
May your guiding light be strong
Build a stairway to heaven
With a prince or a vagabond

And may you never love in vain
And in my heart you will remain
Forever young, forever young
Forever young, forever young
Forever young
Forever young

And when you finally fly away
Ill be hoping that I served you well
For all the wisdom of a lifetime
No one can ever tell

But whatever road you choose
Im right behind you, win or lose
Forever young, forever young
Forever young ,forever young
Forever young, forever young
For, forever young, forever young

BTW .... Get our troops home now!

[Dudley_DUright]

1. Thanks for this

I was just in DC a few weeks ago and went to visit the wall and touch the name of my father-in-law that I never had a chance to meet and thank for the honor of marrying his wonderful daughter.

[Bigmack]

2. I think about my friends...

and realize they're frozen in time in my mind.

They never got old... never got fat... never became blowhard assholes at the VFW.

They'll always be the young studs I knew.