REMEMBER THE FALLEN

Better late than never I guess. I missed Memorial Day, and 9/11, but it's not long after the latter, nor is it too far past the former.

The tomb of the Unknown Soldier, This memorial houses the remains of randomly selected soldiers from WWI. He was removed from his resting place in France, and now rests in Washington DC, in the Arlington National Cemetary. Nobody knows the identity of this soldier. That is intentional. His grave honors every single soldier who was buried in an unmarked grave, listed MIA, blown beyond recognition by enemy fire. This memorial is one of the most honored in the city. Joining him in his grave are the remains of soldiers from WWII, Vietnam, and the Korean Conflict. All are similarly unknown.

On September eleventh, 2001, on a tuesday morning, tragedy struck our nation. We were attacked by terrorists in a brutal display of hatred. Many lives were lost in the initial tragedy. Even more gave their lives trying to rescue survivors. People were buried by rubble, burned alive, some could not be identified, even with dental records or dogtags. In my opinion the tomb of the unkown soldier honors them too. The brave men and women of the NYPD and NYFD.

In remembrance of the unknown soldier, and all he represents, please observe a moment of silence before continuing.

Thank you. The following is a short poem I have written in honor of this memorial:

All alone, in a crowded room,
He lays without a friend
This soldier is destined for no tomb
Though he met an honorable end

A communal pit shall be his lot
Though his life he valiantly gave
There is no Cross to mark the spot
Of an Unknown Soldier's grave

To the true unknowns, whose bodies were never found.

I'm only sorry that I missed a proper date to post this,
Jens