FReeper Canteen ~ Remembering Our Troops!! ~ 04 August 2016

Serving The Bestest Troops and Veterans In The World !! | The Canteen Crew

[Kathy in Alaska]

~ The FReeper Canteen Presents ~

~ Remembering Our Troops!! ~

IT'S FROSTY

U.S. Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class Godson Bagnabana puts up an inflatable snowman on the flight deck of the USS Ronald Reagan in Yokosuka, Japan, Dec. 17, 2015. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 3rd Class Nathan Burke

Canteen Mission Statement

Showing support and boosting the morale of
our military and our allies' military
and family members of the above.
Honoring those who have served before.

AIR POWER

Two CH-47F Chinook helicopters take off en route to retrieve air assault troops to prepare for an air assault mission as part of Trident Juncture 2015, a NATO exercise, in Zaragoza, Spain, Nov. 3, 2015. The helicopters are assigned to Company H, 1st Battalion, 214th Aviation Regiment, 12th Combat Aviation Brigade. U.S. Army photo by Sgt. Thomas Mort

REFUELING RESOLVE

U.S airmen deliver fuel to support Operation Inherent Resolve on coalition bases in Iraq, Dec. 16, 2015. The mission is the coalition intervention against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, or ISIL. U.S. Air Force photo by Tech. Sgt. Nathan Lipscomb

FIGHTING FIRE WITH FIRE

Marines run through smoke during a live-fire assault portion of a combat readiness evaluation on Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms, CA, Dec. 6, 2015. The evaluation prepares them for their upcoming deployment rotation. The Marines are assigned to the 1st Marine Division's 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Devan K. Gowans

MANNING A MACHINE GUN

As seen through a night-vision device, a U.S. paratrooper mans a machine gun from the top of a vehicle while providing security during Exercise Rock Nemesis on Rivolto Air Base, Italy, Dec. 4, 2015. U.S. Army photo by Paolo Bovo

WATER TEST

U.S. Navy Seaman Brandon Seymer conducts a bottom sediment and water test aboard the USS Ross in the Black Sea, Dec. 14, 2015. Seymer is a gas turbine systems technician fireman. The Ross is conducting a routine patrol in the U.S. 6th Fleet area of operations to support U.S. national security interests in Europe. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class Justin Stumberg

YELLOW SIGNAL

U.S. Navy Petty Officer 2nd Class K. Butler signals an MH-60R Seahawk helicopter as it refuels aboard the guided-missile destroyer USS Bulkeley in the Gulf of Aden, Dec. 19, 2015. Butler is a boatswain's mate assigned to Maritime Strike Squadron 72. The Bulkeley is supporting maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the 5th Fleet area of responsibility. U.S. Navy photo by Petty Officer 2nd Class M. J. Lieberknecht

Please remember that The Canteen is here to support
and entertain our troops and veterans and their families,
and is family friendly.

[ConorMacNessa]

REQUEST PERMISSION TO COME ABOARD



CHARLESTOWN, Mass. (Jan. 14, 2008) The first major snowfall of the New Year blankets the USS Constitution. Despite the weather "Old Ironsides" remained open for free public tours. At 210 years-old, USS Constitution is the oldest commissioned warship afloat in the world, manned by 67 active-duty United States Sailors and visited by nearly half a million visitors annually. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Eric Brown (Released)

GOD BLESS AND PROTECT OUR TROOPS AND OUR BELOVED NATION!!!





Boston, Oct. 21, 2009 - Boatswains Mate 2nd Class Philip Gagnon pipes as USS Constitution performs an underway demonstration in honor of the three-masted wooden frigate's 212th birthday. (U.S. Navy photo by Airman Mark Alexander/Released).
(Click for Bosun's Whistle)



USS Constitution's 1812 Marine Guard fire vintage Springfield flintlock muskets during the ship's underway. "Old Ironsides" was underway for the "Constitution Day Cruise," which is conducted to thank the family and supporters of Constitution. U.S. Navy photo by Airman Nick Lyman (Released)

OUR TROOPS ROCK!!!!!!!

[Kathy in Alaska]

Permission Granted!

[SkyDancer]

~ Good Evening ~

~ Welcome To My World ~

[Kathy in Alaska]

Hello Veterans, wherever you are!!

[ConorMacNessa]

Thanks very much, Kathy!
***HUGS***



Striding up the gangplank as we speak,
rendering Hand Salutes to our National Colors
and to the Officer of the Deck!
Thank you very much for this evening's
"Remembering Our Troops" thread!

[Kathy in Alaska]

Good evening, Janey...((HUGS))...any flying soon?

Did your Santa Barbara trip all go well?

[ConorMacNessa]

GOD BLESS AND PROTECT OUR TROOPS AND OUR BELOVED NATION!



"The Star Spangled Banner"
Verse Four
(Click)

Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand
Between their loved home and the war's desolation!
Blest with victory and peace, may the heav'n rescued land
Praise the Power that hath made and preserved us a nation.
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: "In God is our trust."
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Please let me know by Freepmail if you would like
to be admitted to or released from my music ping list.

[mylife]

Nothing tugs at me in winter like the Tug Boats decked in lights a Bath Maine Shipyards.

[Kathy in Alaska]

Sending out prayers for Arrowhead1952 as he recovers from his horrible fall.

~ Remembering Our Troops!! ~

FR CANTEEN MISSION STATEMENT

Showing support and boosting the morale of
our military and our allies’ military
and the family members of the above.
Honoring those who have served before.

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To every service man or woman reading this thread.
Thank You for your service to our country.
No matter where you are stationed,
No matter what your job description
Know that we are proud of each and every one of you.
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The FR Canteen is Free Republic's longest running daily thread
specifically designed to provide entertainment and moral support for the military.
The doors have been open since Oct 7 2001,
the day of the start of the war in Afghanistan.

We are indebted to you for your sacrifices for our Freedom.

NOTE: CANTEEN MUSIC
Posted daily and on the Music Thread
for the enjoyment of our troops and visitors.

[ConorMacNessa]

Welcome To All Who Enter This Canteen, To Our Serving Military, To Our Veterans, To All Military Families, To Our FRiends and To Our Allies!



Missing Man Setting

"The Empty Chair"

By Captain Carroll "Lex" Lefon, USN (RET), on December 21st, 2004

"In the wardroom onboard the aircraft carrier from which I recently debarked was a small, round table, with single chair. No one ever sat there, and the reasons, both for the table being there, and for the fact that the chair was always empty, will tell the reader a little bit about who we are as a culture. The wardroom, of course, is where the officers will dine; morning, noon and evening. It is not only a place to eat – it is also a kind of oasis from the sometimes dreary, often difficult exigencies of the service. A place of social discourse, of momentary relief from the burdens of the day. The only things explicitly forbidden by inviolable tradition in the wardroom are the wearing of a cover or sword by an officer not actually on watch, or conversation which touches upon politics or religion. But aboard ships which observe the custom, another implicit taboo concerns the empty chair: No matter how crowded the room, no matter who is waiting to be seated, that chair is never moved, never taken.

The table is by the main entrance to the wardroom. You will see it when you enter, and you will see it when you leave. It draws your eyes because it is meant to. And because it draws your eyes it draws your thoughts. And though it will be there every day for as long as you are at sea, you will look at it every time and your eyes will momentarily grow distant as you think for a moment. As you quietly give thanks.

AS YOU REMEMBER.

The small, round table is covered with a gold linen tablecloth. A single place setting rests there, of fine bone china. A wineglass stands upon the table, inverted, empty. On the dinner plate is a pinch of salt. On the bread plate is a slice of lemon. Besides the plate lies a bible. There is a small vase with a single red rose upon the table. Around the vase is wound a yellow ribbon. There is the empty chair.

We will remember because over the course of our careers, we will have had the opportunity to enjoy many a formal evening of dinner and dancing in the fine company of those with whom we have the honor to serve, and their lovely ladies. And as the night wears on, our faces will in time become flushed with pleasure of each other’s company, with the exertions on the dance floor, with the effects of our libations. But while the feast is still at its best, order will be called to the room – we will be asked to raise our glasses to the empty table, and we will be asked to remember:

The table is round to show our everlasting concern for those who are missing. The single setting reminds us that every one of them went to their fates alone, that every life was unique.

The tablecloth is gold symbolizing the purity of their motives when they answered the call to duty.

The single red rose, displayed in a vase, reminds us of the life of each of the missing, and their loved ones who kept the faith.

The yellow ribbon around the vase symbolizes our continued determination to remember them.

The slice of lemon reminds us of the bitterness of their fate.
The salt symbolizes the tears shed by those who loved them.
The bible represents the faith that sustained them.
The glass is inverted — they cannot share in the toast.
The chair is empty — they are not here. They are missing.

And we will remember, and we will raise our glasses to those who went before us, and who gave all that they had for us. And a part of the flush in our faces will pale as we remember that nothing worth having ever came without a cost. We will remember that many of our brothers and sisters have paid that cost in blood. We will remember that the reckoning is not over.

We many of us will settle with our families into our holiday season, our Christmas season for those who celebrate it, content in our fortune and prosperity. We will meet old friends with smiles and laughter. We will meet our members of our family with hugs. We will eat well, and exchange gifts and raise our glasses to the year passed in gratitude, and to the year to come with hope. We will sleep the sleep of the protected, secure in our homes, secure in our homeland.

But for many families, there will be an empty chair at the table this year. A place that is not filled.

WE SHOULD REMEMBER."

Many Thanks To Alfa6 For Finding Capt. Lefon's Chronicle Of "The Empty Chair."

"Träumerei"
Robert Schumann
(Click)

Never Forget The Brave Men And Women Who
Gave Their Lives To Secure Our Freedom!!

[Kathy in Alaska]

United States Marine Corps Band ~ National Anthem

[mylife]

[The Mayor]

Freep mail me to be on or off the Daily Bread ping list

Every Kind of Gift

August 4, 2016

Recently, I’ve had to intervene in several blowups between my two sons. The result of such events inevitably leads to their losing the privilege of spending time with friends, loss of their allowances, and more. They’re learning that the failure to work out their differences peaceably can be costly. Thankfully, I’ve also had opportunities to lavish generosity on both boys, to surprise them with a gift they would never have expected. I’m trying to teach them that both my correction and my generosity are gifts from me to them. Both emerge from my love toward them and for them.

James says something similar about God’s way with us. “Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father” (James 1:17). In other words, if it’s good, then it comes from God. While James tells us that everything God gives is good and generous, I believe he’s saying something even more profound. With these words, he reveals that every kind of generosity we could ever encounter (every beautiful sunset, act of friendship, encounter with grace, or loving correction) can be traced back to God.

For James, then, the question isn’t whether we’ll encounter God, but whether or not we’ll recognize Him whenever we receive the many gifts that pass through His loving hands to us. This is one of the reasons James encourages us not to “be misled” (James 1:16), because God is the source of every good gift; and this gift-giving One can be trusted to always operate with generosity toward us—His “prized possession” (James 1:18). He “never changes or casts a shifting shadow” (James 1:17). Every kind of gift comes from God—the gifts that we easily embrace as well as the gifts that we struggle to recognize at first glance.

NLT 365-day reading plan passage for today: Luke 11:33-54

More:

Read 2 Cor. 9:10-15.What do we learn about God’s generosity from the farmer and the bread?

[Kathy in Alaska]

Good evening, Mac...*HUGS*...has your weather settled down yet?

We had a little rain overnight, but right now it is beautiful blue sky outside.

[Kathy in Alaska]

I’ve seen pictures of Navy ships all decked out, but not tugs.

Sounds cool.

[Kathy in Alaska]

Kate Smith ~ God Bless America

[mylife]

Boats Darling, Boats... ☺

[Kathy in Alaska]

Mac!!

[Kathy in Alaska]

Janey!!