{"id":10795,"date":"2011-12-22T17:57:58","date_gmt":"2011-12-22T22:57:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/watchwomanonthewall\/?p=10795"},"modified":"2011-12-22T18:14:55","modified_gmt":"2011-12-22T23:14:55","slug":"remember-our-troops-and-veterans-at-christmas-hanukkah","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/watchwomanonthewall\/2011\/12\/remember-our-troops-and-veterans-at-christmas-hanukkah.html","title":{"rendered":"Remember our troops and veterans at Christmas & Hanukkah"},"content":{"rendered":"

A Poem Written by a Soldier<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

<\/strong>\"\"<\/p>\n

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\u201c Christmas Poem<\/span> \u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS,<\/strong>
\n HE LIVED ALL ALONE,<\/strong>
\n IN A ONE BEDROOM HOUSE MADE OF<\/strong>
\n PLASTER AND STONE.<\/strong><\/p>\n

I HAD COME DOWN THE CHIMNEY<\/strong>
\n WITH PRESENTS TO GIVE,<\/strong>
\n AND TO SEE JUST WHO<\/strong>
\n IN THIS HOME DID LIVE.<\/strong><\/p>\n

I LOOKED ALL ABOUT,<\/strong>
\n A STRANGE SIGHT I DID SEE,<\/strong>
\n NO TINSEL, NO PRESENTS,<\/strong>
\n NOT EVEN A TREE.<\/strong><\/p>\n

NO STOCKING BY MANTLE,<\/strong>
\n JUST BOOTS FILLED WITH SAND,<\/strong>
\n ON THE WALL HUNG PICTURES<\/strong>
\n OF FAR DISTANT LANDS.<\/strong><\/p>\n

WITH MEDALS AND BADGES,<\/strong>
\n AWARDS OF ALL KINDS,<\/strong>
\n A SOBER THOUGHT<\/strong>
\n CAME THROUGH MY MIND.<\/strong><\/p>\n

FOR THIS HOUSE WAS DIFFERENT,<\/strong>
\n IT WAS DARK AND DREARY,<\/strong>
\n I FOUND THE HOME OF A SOLDIER,<\/strong>
\n ONCE I COULD SEE CLEARLY.<\/strong><\/p>\n

THE SOLDIER LAY SLEEPING,<\/strong>
\n SILENT, ALONE,<\/strong>
\n CURLED UP ON THE FLOOR<\/strong>
\n IN THIS ONE BEDROOM HOME.<\/strong><\/p>\n

THE FACE WAS SO GENTLE,<\/strong>
\n THE ROOM IN SUCH DISORDER,<\/strong>
\n NOT HOW I PICTURED<\/strong>
\n A UNITED STATES SOLDIER.<\/strong><\/p>\n

WAS THIS THE HERO<\/strong>
\n OF WHOM I’D JUST READ?<\/strong>
\n CURLED UP ON A PONCHO,<\/strong>
\n THE FLOOR FOR A BED?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I REALIZED THE FAMILIES<\/strong>
\n THAT I SAW THIS NIGHT,<\/strong>
\n OWED THEIR LIVES TO THESE SOLDIERS<\/strong>
\n WHO WERE WILLING TO FIGHT.<\/strong><\/p>\n

SOON ROUND THE WORLD,<\/strong>
\n THE CHILDREN WOULD PLAY,<\/strong>
\n AND GROWNUPS WOULD CELEBRATE<\/strong>
\n A BRIGHT CHRISTMAS DAY.<\/strong><\/p>\n

THEY ALL ENJOYED FREEDOM<\/strong>
\n EACH MONTH OF THE YEAR,<\/strong>
\n BECAUSE OF THE SOLDIERS,<\/strong>
\n LIKE THE ONE LYING HERE.<\/strong><\/p>\n

I COULDN’T HELP WONDER<\/strong>
\n HOW MANY LAY ALONE,<\/strong>
\n ON A COLD CHRISTMAS EVE<\/strong>
\n IN A LAND FAR FROM HOME.<\/strong><\/p>\n

THE VERY THOUGHT<\/strong>
\n BROUGHT A TEAR TO MY EYE,<\/strong>
\n I DROPPED TO MY KNEES<\/strong>
\n AND STARTED TO CRY.<\/strong><\/p>\n

THE SOLDIER AWAKENED<\/strong>
\n AND I HEARD A ROUGH VOICE,<\/strong>
\n “SANTA DON’T CRY,<\/strong>
\n THIS LIFE IS MY CHOICE;<\/strong><\/p>\n

I FIGHT FOR FREEDOM,<\/strong>
\n I DON’T ASK FOR MORE,<\/strong>
\n MY LIFE IS MY GOD,<\/strong>
\n MY! COUNTRY, MY CORPS.”<\/strong><\/p>\n

THE SOLDIER ROLLED OVER<\/strong>
\n AND DRIFTED TO SLEEP,<\/strong>
\n I COULDN’T CONTROL IT,<\/strong>
\n I CONTINUED TO WEEP.<\/strong><\/p>\n

I WEPT FOR HOURS,<\/strong>
\n SO SILENT AND STILL<\/strong>
\n AND WE BOTH SHIVERED<\/strong>
\n FROM THE COLD NIGHT’S CHILL.<\/strong><\/p>\n

I DIDN’T WANT TO LEAVE<\/strong>
\n ON THAT COLD, DARK, NIGHT,<\/strong>
\n THIS GUARDIAN OF HONOR<\/strong>
\n SO WILLING TO FIGHT.<\/strong><\/p>\n

THEN THE SOLDIER ROLLED OVER,<\/strong>
\n WITH A VOICE SOFT AND PURE,<\/strong>
\n WHISPERED, “CARRY ON SANTA,<\/strong>
\n IT’S CHRISTMAS DAY, ALL IS SECURE.”<\/strong><\/p>\n

ONE LOOK AT MY WATCH,<\/strong>
\n AND I KNEW HE WAS RIGHT.<\/strong>
\n “MERRY CHRISTMAS MY FRIEND!<\/strong>
\n AND TO ALL A GOOD NIGHT.”<\/strong><\/p>\n

This poem was written by a Marine.
\n<\/strong>The following is his request.\u00a0 I think it is reasonable…..<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/div>\n
\u00a0<\/strong><\/span><\/div>\n

PLEASE. Would you do me the kind favor of sending this to as many people as you can?\u00a0 Christmas will be coming soon and some credit is due to our U.S. service men and women for our being able to celebrate these festivities.\u00a0 Let’s try in this small way to pay a tiny bit of what we owe.\u00a0 Make people stop and think of our heroes, living and dead, who sacrificed themselves for us.\u00a0 Please, do your small part to plant this small seed.<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

(Watchwoman: <\/span><\/span>I know this has been around for a while, but we still need to remember our U. S. military troops, from the old times of \u00a0yesteryear at Valley Forge in the Revolutionary War to the wars still raging in the Middle East today, so as you read this, pray for and remember every one of our troops and veterans – every one is a hero. \u00a0Some are lying wounded in hospitals. \u00a0Each member of their families long to be spending the holidays with them wherever their loved one is. \u00a0Most of all remember the Gold-Star families who will never spend another holiday with their beloved hero again on planet earth — until, God willing, they meet in heaven with the Christ who was born over 2000 years ago in a lowly manger. \u00a0Make room in your hearts to receive the blessings of Jesus Christ’s birth, life, death on a Cross and His Glorious\u00a0Resurrection, so you, too, can be with all the loved ones that you’ve lost, together in heaven forever and ever, where there will never be another war. \u00a0The Prince of Peace Reigns there forever and ever!<\/span><\/span>\u00a0 If you have any doubt about your salvation and you want peace on earth right now, please read a piece I posted entitled…“Inspirational. Do you know for sure?” posted on Tuesday July 26, 2011 located at\u00a0http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/watchwomanonthewall\/?p=4928<\/a><\/strong>\u00a0. \u00a0\u25ac\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0Donna Calvin<\/span>)<\/span><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A Poem Written by a Soldier \u201c Christmas Poem \u201d TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS, HE LIVED ALL ALONE, IN A ONE BEDROOM HOUSE MADE OF PLASTER AND STONE. I HAD COME DOWN THE CHIMNEY WITH PRESENTS TO GIVE, AND TO SEE JUST WHO IN THIS HOME DID LIVE. I LOOKED ALL ABOUT, A STRANGE…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":403,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,252,3837,2746,924,151,257,1108,407,2837,108,1484,156,1920,254,64,530,5,1240],"tags":[3801,3886,3740,3885,3884,3887,3882,3883],"class_list":["post-10795","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-america","category-christian","category-good-deeds","category-good-vs-evil","category-heroes","category-holidays","category-military","category-patriots","category-pray","category-prayer-2","category-religion","category-scriptural-living","category-take-action","category-taking-america-back","category-u-s-military-2","category-u-s-military-chaplains","category-u-s-navy","category-u-s-marines","category-war-2","tag-christmas","tag-christmas-eve","tag-hanukkah","tag-new-years-day","tag-new-years-eve","tag-remember","tag-troops","tag-veterans"],"yoast_head":"\nRemember our troops and veterans at Christmas & Hanukkah - Watchwoman on the Wall<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/watchwomanonthewall\/2011\/12\/remember-our-troops-and-veterans-at-christmas-hanukkah.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Remember our troops and veterans at Christmas & Hanukkah - Watchwoman on the Wall\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A Poem Written by a Soldier \u201c Christmas Poem \u201d TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS, HE LIVED ALL ALONE, IN A ONE BEDROOM HOUSE MADE OF PLASTER AND STONE. 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