...and not to yield

My husband and I went to the new James Bond movie, Skyfall, on Sunday.  In the middle of the action, violence and obligatory sex scene all of a sudden there was a stirring moment where Dame Judy Dench, as M, delivers a quote from Tennyson.  It was not a poem I had heard before and it reminded me of my father and his generation, who fought the good fight to keep our freedom intact.  Since I don't blog on Sundays, I am using today's blog to honor my father, my uncles, my brother and brother-in-laws, my sister-in-law, my cousins and especially my nephew, Aaron, who gave his life for his country this past June.  All of you, strong of will and ready to do what was called upon you to carry out, moved heaven and earth to keep those of us at home free.  And for that, a simple thank you seems woefully insufficient.  Gratitude, day in and day out, is what we need to carry in our hearts for the lives you put on hold while serving our nation and keeping it strong.   Thank you, from the bottom of my heart.

Though much is taken, much abides; and though
We are not now that strength which in old days
Moved earth and heaven; that which we are, we are;
One equal temper of heroic hearts,
Made weak by time and fate, but strong in will
To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield.

--From Ulysses by Alfred, Lord Tennyson 

My dad, WWII Navy veteran

My beautiful sister and her husband, who we welcomed back from Afghanistan last year

My brother during Desert Storm

My nephew, who gave the ultimate sacrifice for his country