Wednesday, November 7, 2007

Veterans Day Remembrance

My mother is the person who taught me to love plants, as she learned from her mother and grandmothers. As a matter of fact, this sedum in my garden...

...comes from the original plant of my great-grandmother, Vinny. Here is a photo of her at about 12 years old...


Speaking of mothers, a reporter for the Kansas City Star interviewed my mom for this Veterans Day weekend. It's a good article, though the writer left out some interesting tidbits. My mother, grandmother and great-grandmother moved to Berkley, CA during the war where my grandmother, a true Rosie the Riveter, made bomb parts and welded plane fuselages while my great-grandmother, Nell, was a dietitian for the Navy. They all moved back to Missouri after the war; just before my grandfather returned home from duty as a Marine Sergeant of the Guard on the USS Mount Vernon.


I had so many relatives serve & sacrifice during WWII that I watched the outstanding HBO series Band of Brothers with a personal interest. If you haven't caught it yet, please consider renting it.

"...From this day to the ending of the world,
But we in it shall be remember'd;
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother..."Speech by HenryV in William Shakespeare's play of the same name.

In Flander's Fields

5 comments:

Lisa at Greenbow said...

A great tribute to Veterans Day. Let none of us forget the untold sacrifices made by many.

Mary said...

Great tribute to Veterans Day and a lovely story about a special lady who inspired your gardening.

Mary

Annie in Austin said...

It was interesting to meet some of your family, Dawn - and to remember the women who were part of the war effort!

Annie at the Transplantable Rose

A wildlife gardener said...

Wonderful tribute and personal history to make it even more relevant.

Anonymous said...

Dawn,

Loved hearing about your "riveting" relatives. What a source of family solidarity and pride.

Happy Thanksgiving,
Julie