Veterans Day 2015: In Flanders Fields & Beyond

 In Flanders Fields

In Flanders Fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders Fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe;

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

In Flanders Fields.

Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae

(1872-1918)

Canadian Army

On November 11, 1918
at the eleventh hour, 
of the eleventh day of the eleventh month

the Armistice was signed, bringing to an end,
 "the war to end all wars" 
World War I.

November 11th became Armistice Day
 in America,
 which was later

changed to Veterans Day
 to honor all who have given their lives 
 in the name of freedom.

Reply To Flanders Fields

Oh! sleep in peace where poppies grow;

The torch your falling hands let go

Was caught by us, again held high,

A beacon light in Flanders sky

That dims the stars to those below.

You are our dead, you held the foe,

And ere the poppies cease to blow,

We'll prove our faith in you who lie

In Flanders Fields

Oh! rest in peace, we quickly go

To you who bravely died, and know

In other fields was heard the cry

For freedom's cause, of you who lie,

So still asleep where poppies grow

In Flanders Fields.

As in rumbling sound, to and fro,

The lightning flashes, sky aglow,

The mighty hosts appear, and high

Above the din of battle cry,

Scarce heard amidst the guns below,

And fearless hearts who fight the foe,

And guard the place where poppies grow.

Oh! sleep in peace, all you who lie

In Flanders Fields

And still the poppies gently blow,

Between the crosses, row on row,

The larks, still bravely soaring high,

Are singing now their lullaby

To you who sleep where poppies grow.

In Flanders Fields

-John Mitchell

Another Reply To  In Flanders Fields

In Flanders Fields the cannons boom,

And fitful flashes light the gloom;

While up above, like eagles, fly

The fierce destroyers in the sky;

With stains the earth wherein you lie

Is redder than the poppy bloom,

In Flanders Fields

Sleep on, ye brave! The shrieking shell,

The quaking trench, the startling yell,

The fury of the battle hell

Shall wake you not, for all is well;

Sleep peacefully, for all is well.

Your flaming torch aloft we bear,

With burning heat and oath we swear

To keep the faith, to fight it through,

To crush the foe, or sleep with you,

In Flanders Fields.

-J.A. Armstrong

The Storming of Utah Beach

during the D-Day Invasion

June 6, 1944

America's Answer

Rest ye in peace, ye Flanders dead,

The fight that ye so bravely led

We've taken up. And we will keep

true faith with you who lie asleep

With each cross to mark his bed,

In Flanders Fields

Fear not that ye have died for naught.

The torch ye threw to us we caught.

Ten million hands will hold it high,

And Freedom's light shall never die!

We've learned the lesson that ye taught

In Flanders Fields

-R.W. Lilliard

To all who have honorably served

this great nation,

past and present,

both in war and in peace time,

thank you for your courage

and your commitment towards
defending and protecting
the American people.

And especially,

thank you all 

for my freedom!