When Claudia answered the phone call from her mother this afternoon, my ninety year old mother-in-law asked to speak to me – somewhat of a rarity. I was expecting her to ask me to come and set her clock, or perhaps adjust the volume on her phone, or maybe her television needed some attention. Instead, she asked me to listen as she recited The Pledge of Allegiance.
Vera was a little nervous because she had been asked to open the Veterans Day program at the assisted living facility where she lives. She is a veteran who served our country in the Navy WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service) during World War II, and she had received the honor of reciting The Pledge of Allegiance. She was a little rusty, she said, and wanted to practice to make sure she had it right. I switched the phone to “speaker”. Claudia and I listened together and savored the moment.
“I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America,” she began. Her voice was soft, child-like, reverent. It crackled sometimes as she struggled to remember the words, and there was a slight tinge of patriotic emotion laced throughout. I could very easily have been listening to one of my grandchildren proudly reciting “The Pledge” for the first time.
“And to the republic for which it stands,” she continued after a short pause to clear her throat. I recalled how she had more than once told us about reading the roster of names of men who had died at Iwo Jima as this list was being reported at the office where she was working. She could never tell the story without weeping.
“One nation under God, indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all,” she concluded. And as I praised her for her success, I once again felt as if I my attention could have just as easily been directed to one of our grandchildren; her great grandchildren.
“You know,” she coyly asserted, “the program starts next Monday at 10:00 A.M., and I’m not sure but I think it is open to guests.”
“We’ll be there,” I replied, “and I’ll be sure to sit up front in case you forget your lines.”
She didn’t think she would need any help, but she would be glad to see us there.
On this coming Veterans Day, please take a moment to remember our veterans. Feel free to tell them that you are grateful for their service if you get the chance; and it’s okay to give them a hug too, but be careful hugging the WWII vets. Some of them are starting to get a little frail nowadays – still feisty none the less.
November 7, 2013
Grampy Lash 