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The Symbol ...© 2001 by Ed Presnall
As I removed it from the closet and held it close to my chest, a tiny crack opened in my armor. A door, sealed shut so many years ago, slowly opened and the memories, starting with a single teardrop flowed forth with the force of a raging river.
The smell of the fresh cut grass, the oppressive humidity of that August morning, the lonely almost mourning sounds of the bugler playing “taps”. We stood, dressed in our Sunday best and waited while those in crisp uniforms, with bright and colorful medals and ribbons pinned to their chest, slowly folded the flag into a sharp triangle.
With an almost slow motion salute my mother accepted the red, white and blue triangle as a thank you from a grateful nation for services provided those many years ago in another war. Turning on his heel, the officer walked away from the casket and stood with the others in the shade of a small tree. It was 1968, a time of turbulence in America. Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King were gunned down on the streets of America, National Guard troops were called out in Chicago and a lifetime away, our troops fought to defend democracy in places named Khesanh and Da Nang.
She turned and handed it to me. I clutched it close and have carried it with me for thirty-three years and a dozen moves across this country. It is 2001 and again, a time of turbulence in America. Last night my heart told me it was time. I took it out of the box and slowly unfolded it. The cloth was still as fresh and crisp as it had been a generation ago when someone carefully sewed each seam, bar and star.
We hung it from the front porch of the house. From the top of the highest hill, it can be seen by anyone coming or going down the county road. I know we are a long way from a major city, but even those of us who live in the country are proud to fly our colours in this time of trouble. I also know that he would be proud that I have chosen to use his flag in such a blatent display of emotion.
When the flag was first adopted in 1777, the U.S. Continental Congress justified the flag's attributes this way: "White signifies Purity and Innocence; Red, Hardiness and Valor; Blue signifies Vigilance, Perseverance and Justice," with the stars forming "a new constellation." Those of you who set forth to destroy what we in America have built be warned. We are no longer as innocent as we may have been in the past. You have again awakened our hardness, valor and perseverance which will not be satisfied until justice is achieved.© 2003-1996 - Ed Presnall - All Rights Reserved