Chris aka FDG Stitch was a top bloke and we gamed for many years with him.. so sad to hear the news today (23-09-2018), only a couple years older than me..(ADF-Cheech) LIFE is SHORT...May Stitch rest in peace, condolences to his family and his friends here and beyond ADFTEAM.
Hang on I've seen something like that before - let me look that up - back shortly.
Ode to The Huey
Thumping, growling, blades going round,
How Charlie must have hated that sound.
Twenty years on, it's with me still,
Won't go away. Never will.
Did you fly through those skies where the sun sets bright red?
Go out with the living, come back with the dead?
Now you fly through skies of a different hue -
Are you a Vietnam Veteran too?
You fly over home to the Air Force base
A bird of war in a peaceful place.
I wonder what action, what sights did you see -
The diggers you carried - was one of them me?
We might have met, you and I at "The Dat",
At Bien Hoa, The Horseshoe, Long Binh or Bearcat.
Most likely embarking at kangaroo Pad,
On one of a hundred such flights that I had.
A picture I've got shows a place I once saw
From up in the air, looking down through the door.
Did you see it too, the bomb cratered scene,
The vivid red scars in a carpet of green?
Did you see it too, did you hear the roar
Of what men do in the name of war?
With rockets and phosphorus, splinters and shells,
What would you say if you only could tell…?
You're getting old now my friend, as choppers go -
Years of hard work don't even show.
Your battle scars are all patched and clean -
You're lucky, Huey, you're just a machine.
But what happens, old friend, when your flying is through?
What do you think they'll do with you?
Will they cast you aside like the others before?
A forgotten piece of a forgotten war?
(The poem was found in a copy of the Army Transport Association Newsletter and was written by an ex-member of 161 Recce Flight to mark the 20th Anniversary of the Battle of Long Tan.)
no that's not it - but you might be interested - still looking
The soldier stood and faced God,
Which must always come to p a s s,.
He hoped his shoes were shining,
Just as brightly as his brass.
'Step forward now, you soldier,
How shall I deal with you ?
Have you always turned the other cheek ?
To My Church have you been true?'
The soldier squared his shoulders and said,
'No, Lord, I guess I ain't.
Because those of us who carry guns,
Can't always be a saint.
I've had to work most Sundays,
And at times my talk was tough.
And sometimes I've been violent,
Because the world is awfully rough.
But, I never took a penny,
That wasn't mine to keep...
Though I worked a lot of overtime,
When the bills got just too steep.
And I never passed a cry for help,
Though at times I shook with fear.
And sometimes, God, forgive me,
I've wept unmanly tears.
I know I don't deserve a place,
Among the people here..
They never wanted me around,
Except to calm their fears.
If you've a place for me here, Lord,
It needn't be so grand.
I never expected or had too much,
But if you don't, I'll understand.
There was a silence all around the throne,
Where the saints had often trod.
As the soldier waited quietly,
For the judgment of his God.
'Step forward now, you soldier,
You've borne your burdens well.
Walk peacefully on Heaven's streets,
You've done your time in Hell.'
~ Author Unknown ~
still lookin!!!
Can't find it ------yet
but this one is "The Dizz" you've probably seen it B4
NEW DIRECTION FOR WAR AND SERVICE - VETS OVER 60 !
I am over 60 and the Armed Forces think I'm too old to track down terrorists. You can't be older than 42 to join the military.
They've got the whole thing back-to-front.
Instead of sending 18-year olds off to fight, they ought to take us old guys. You shouldn't be able to join a military unit until you're at least 35. WHY?
For starters: Researchers say 18-year olds think about sex every 10 seconds. Old guys only think about sex a couple of times a day, leaving us more than 28,000 additional seconds per day to concentrate on the enemy. Young guys haven't lived long enough to be cranky, and a cranky soldier is a dangerous soldier. My back hurts! I can't sleep, I'm tired and hungry. We are impatient and maybe letting us kill some enemy that desperately deserves it will make us feel better and shut us up for a while.
An 18-year-old has the whole world ahead of him. He's still learning to shave, to start up a conversation with a pretty girl. He still hasn't figured out that a baseball cap has a brim to shade his eves, not the back of his head.
An 18-year-old doesn't even like to get up before 10 a.m. Old guys always get up early to pee so what the hell. Besides, like I said, "I'm tired and can't sleep and since I'm already up, I may as well be up killing some fanaticals."
If captured we couldn't spill the beans because we'd forget where we put them. In fact, name, rank, and serial number would be a real brainteaser.
Basic Training would be easier for old guys. We're used to getting screamed and yelled at and we're used to soft food.
We've also developed an appreciation for guns. We've been using them for years as an excuse to get out of the house, away from the screaming and yelling.
They could lighten up on the obstacle course however. I've been on op's and didn't see a single 20-foot wall with rope hanging over the side, nor did I ever do any pushups after completing basic training.
Actually, the running part is kind of a waste of energy, too. I've never seen anyone outrun a bullet.
These are ail great reasons to keep our kids at home to learn a little more about life before sending them off into harm's way.
Let us old guys track down those dirty rotten coward terrorists. The last thing an enemy would want to see is a couple of million pissed off old farts with attitudes and automatic weapons who know that their best years are already behind them.
I have a USMC ones, as I bet you have more Aussie ones...
Long before facing Guadalcanal and Iwo Jima sands,
A group of warriors arose, a brave and hearty band.
Trained and learned a special art, both on land and sea,
They did because they were patriots, and for the likes of me.
They didn't ask 'why must we die for a purpose ill conceived?'
They go to protect our citizens from mortal threats perceived.
With a sword and musket, they honed their skills so well.
They learned of discipline and the tolling of the funeral bell.
The Bible tells of love supreme -of a life freely given.
A man willing to give up His own life, so we can go on living.
His work was done; He agreed to pay the price for all.
Inspired the men who serve today to heed our nation's call.
Trying tasks which they embrace with faith as strong as steel,
Courage, duty, and honor rule; their brave hearts are revealed.
Whenever our country calls for men to go to great extremes,
One force is called on first to lead, the United States Marines.
If danger looms, our best will rise, I hear their solemn creed:
Call on us! Semper Fi! The United States Marines.
Lock ...and... Load ... Rock ...and... Roll ... SEMPER FI
Loyalty, above all, Except Honour
The "DUKE"(John Wayne) in "THE FLYING LEATHERNECKS" said it best when he found out that one of his buddies had "brought the farm" (KIA- killed in action),"Yeah- I knew him".
Yeah--I knew him. I knew of his dreams, his loves, his wish to be in the arms of his family. To be working on his hot rod, instead of beng a "tunnel rat". To be at the ballpark cheering on the Dodgers or whoever, instead of doing a "body count" in some jungle.
Yeah--I knew him. To be on the beach enjoying the sun, surf, the girls and having a few cold ones, not waiting in a damn rice paddy on an ambush. To be home at Christmas time singing carols in the snow, instead on a LRRP or on a search and destory mission.
Yeah--I knew him. Holding his newborn child in his arms and looking at his wife in love and wonderment. Not screaming out in terror in the middle of the night because of some nightmare that happened today or a dozen years ago.
Yeah--I knew him. Late at night, in the bunker drinking hot beer, talking about things and girls. Maybe the women we loved, going steady with, married to or just got a "Dear John" from. Remembering her pretty eyes, the way she made love, the way she kisses, maybe how she could make us feel to beside her or away from her.
Yeah--I knew him. knocking the grand slam at the softball game, selling that new car to the newlywed couple, planting the last seed on the north 40, instead of holding on to his closest buddy, making his last moments in this hellhole the best, sharing his last smoke because's no way to save him.
Yeah--I knew him. Everytime I light a square, because he left his "Zippo" to me, the one he brought at the PX and engraved "Joe Ragman- Nam, II Corps, War Zone C". My mind flashes back to those days.
Yeah--I knew him. As I knock on his parent's, wife's or girl- friend's door, to pay my last respects. Telling how we were friends, how he felt about the war, how much he wanted to be back home. As I gave them his last letter, which he had not mailed. I saw their eyes fill with anger, hurt, tears and then the questions. Damn ?'s
Yeah--I knew him. As I stared into his face that's lost forever in the never-never land of the V.A. Hospital and drugs. He never came home as Joe Ragman, but as a zombie. Lost forever somewhere in that last firefight, dancing the "Thorazine shuffle".
Yeah--I knew him. As the friend who lives under the bridge or deep in the woods. Scraping an existence off Mother Nature or out of the dumpster of Burger King or grocery stores. Hiding out to escape the stares, the haterd, and the ugliness of the war. Staying loaded to kill the pain, the loneliness, the desperation of life.
Yeah--I knew him. As I walked among the rows of white headstones in the "Garden of Stones" looking at all of the names, dates and places. I look at "The Wall" finding and touching your name. I remember the good and bad times, the hopes, the dreams. I cry, not in sadness, but in hope that "This Wall" shall be the last memorial to those who fought in a war. In a war where all sides, the Victor and the Vanquish, lost. There are no winners in a war.
Yeah--I knew him. Here's to you, Buddy, to your memory, to honor you, to remember you and love you. "Sleep in peace, comrade dear, God is nigh"*
Lock ...and... Load ... Rock ...and... Roll ... SEMPER FI
Loyalty, above all, Except Honour