Marvin, a 99-year-old World War II veteran, stepped out onto his porch. It was Flag Day, a day that held special significance to him. It always brought back memories. Some were good, some were bad. To him, the flag was an important part of his life.
Marvin’s mornings always started the same way. With help from his caretaker Annie, he walked to the flagpole in his front yard to raise his flag. With shaking hands and Annie’s help, he carefully unfolded it the same way he had so many times. This particular Flag Day morning, his hands trembled a bit more than usual. The damp air from recent storms made his withered old body feel cold. The flag was slightly tattered from weeks of wind. Yet, he was determined to fly the flag on this special day.
As they raised the flag, a morning breeze caught it, and it unfurled overhead. Marvin instinctively brought his trembling, wrinkled old hand to his forehead in a slow, precise salute. He had Annie help him back to the porch. Memories washed over him. He thought of the muddy trenches, the freezing nights holding his rifle in the dark, his time as a gunner in an airplane, and the many friends who never made it back home to American soil. To him, that flag represented someone who had given everything for their country.
Lost in his reflections, Marvin didn't immediately notice that a bunch of people from his church had gathered on the sidewalk just beyond his fence. They all loved this man. They had heard his stories, and they had come to celebrate this day with him.
Seeing the old veteran standing on his porch and looking at the flag with his hand over his heart, one by one, his church friends placed their hands over their hearts just like Marvin was doing.
Marvin lowered his hand, blinked back the tears welling in his eyes, and smiled. He walked to the edge of his porch and leaned against the railing.
"Good morning, troops!" Marvin called out, his voice cracking but clear.
"Happy Flag Day, Marvin!" they all replied.
One man spoke up as he stepped closer to the fence. "Mr. Marvin, why do you fly your flag every single day?" Marvin looked out at all of them, then gazed up at the flag snapping in the wind. He told them about the men he served with under its banner, protecting the freedoms they all have. He told them that, even in this broken and divided America, we need to continue to fly it for those men. Moved by his words, they enthusiastically cheered.
For Marvin, that Flag Day was one of the best he could remember. He hoped the memories of his fallen comrades would always live on. He hoped they would all cherish the flag as long as they lived and pass that love on to future generations. He stood there on his porch, hoping that the Star-Spangled Banner would continue to wave long after he was gone. He pledged to keep raising his flag, every single day, as long as he had the strength to do so. It was his last Flag Day.
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT
"Our flag is a universally recognized symbol that stands for liberty and freedom. It is the history of our nation, and it's marked by the blood of those who died defending it."
-Unknown
Nixa, Mo. native Larry Whiteley has been communicating the great outdoors across America for over 40 years through newspapers, magazines, books, blogs, and a nationally syndicated radio show. To read more of his award-winning stories, go to www.storiesbylarry.com. Email him at larrywhiteley2@gmail.com.
