I post this every year. My best friend wrote it.
Happy 4th of July
In 1981 I was 11 yrs old and in the 6 th grade. That was 39 yrs ago. I was attending a small "Class A" school in my tiny hometown of Avery, TX which is located on US Hwy 82 in the extreme northeast corner of the state, and who's population then numbered 525. Running east and west and paralleling the mighty Red River, Hwy 82 spawned dozens of small Texas towns like mine, from Texarkana to Childress. Our Jr. High campus was located on the North side of Hwy. 82 which was, and to this day still is, the largest road anywhere near Avery . My good friend Matt Crawford and I had been chosen to be "flag boys" by Coach Weaver, a man who wore many hats including High School, Jr High, and Elementary School Principal, Drivers Ed Instructor and High School basketball coach. Each morning approximately 5 minutes before class began, we would go to the office to retrieve two neatly folded flags; American and Texas. The tightly folded, thick, cotton cloth triangles would be tucked neatly on a corner desk in Mrs. Bobbie's office where we had left them the previous afternoon. With these sacred bundles in hand, we would then make our way to the flag pole, which was located on the outskirts of the playground and approximately 30 yds from the shoulder of the aforementioned highway. When unfolded, each flag measured approximately 5ft x 3ft and was equipped with 2 well worn brass grommets at the top and bottom of the proximal edge.
The pole itself was approximately 30 ft tall, and constructed of 2 pieces of thick wall galvanized pipe protruding from a large trapezoid slab of concrete measuring approximately 3 ft at the base, 1 ft across the top, and approximately 2 ft tall. The uppermost joint of pipe had a slightly smaller diameter so that it was fit into the lower piece and was collar welded about 2/3 the way to the top. This was the only area I remember seeing any rust. The rest of the pole was shiny. In retrospect, I suspect it was probably fabricated by the high school AG shop. At the top of the pole was a pulley through which a small white nylon rope was threaded. The rope ran down the poll and was tied to itself so that it made a continuous loop. The tail of the rope loop was "figure eighted" around a cleat made of sucker rod which had been welded to the pole about head high to an 11 yr old boy. Just below the cleat, about waist high, the pole was as smooth as glass. This was because the flag pole had served as "home base" for countless games of tag. Kids would run to the pole and grab it with one arm outstretched and utilize the phenomenon of centripetal force to fling themselves around the flag base 180 degrees. The flag pole was also a common meeting place for several generations of 5th and 6th graders. Nary a day went by (from August to June) that some kid wouldn't utter the words "meet me at the flag pole".
Strategically located on the rope were 4 brass quick snaps which were inserted into the flag grommets. I can still remember the sound the brass snaps made as they contacted the hollow flag pole on ascent and descent. Whether or not the flag was attached made all the difference in the metallic tone. The story I want to tell took place on an ordinary weekday morning back in 1981, and centers around this flag pole, Hwy 82, and a total stranger that I had not seen prior, nor have seen since.
As was routine, my friend and I had attached first the American Flag, then the Texas Flag, and were slowly pulling down on the rope taking the flags to the top of the pole. Suddenly and without warning, a west bound car pulled off on the shoulder of the highway and a man we did not know stepped out. He then faced the ascending flags, braced himself at attention and stood there in a rigid salute until the flags came to full mast. I would like to omit this part, but in truth, my friend and I stood there trying to conceal our chuckles as this total stranger stood beside his car saluting the flags we had just erected. As soon as we tied off the rope, the man got back in his car without a word or a gesture, and drove off.
I have thought of this man many, many times over the past 30 plus years. I can only speculate as to his situation. Was he a Vietnam veteran? Did he lose friends, a brother, or an uncle in a foreign land? Was he the orphan of a WWII veteran? Did he have relatives in the Korean War? Or was he simply a proud American showing respect to our most iconic symbol of freedom (THE AMERICAN FLAG)?
I will never know who that man was, and he will never know how his patriotic act was forever burned into my memory. I will never forget the moment, and think of it every time I see the American Flag flying freely! What was seen as "funny" and "strange" by that 11 yr old kid is now seen as a proud display of American Patriotism by this 50yr old father of 3.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Happy 4th of July
In 1981 I was 11 yrs old and in the 6 th grade. That was 39 yrs ago. I was attending a small "Class A" school in my tiny hometown of Avery, TX which is located on US Hwy 82 in the extreme northeast corner of the state, and who's population then numbered 525. Running east and west and paralleling the mighty Red River, Hwy 82 spawned dozens of small Texas towns like mine, from Texarkana to Childress. Our Jr. High campus was located on the North side of Hwy. 82 which was, and to this day still is, the largest road anywhere near Avery . My good friend Matt Crawford and I had been chosen to be "flag boys" by Coach Weaver, a man who wore many hats including High School, Jr High, and Elementary School Principal, Drivers Ed Instructor and High School basketball coach. Each morning approximately 5 minutes before class began, we would go to the office to retrieve two neatly folded flags; American and Texas. The tightly folded, thick, cotton cloth triangles would be tucked neatly on a corner desk in Mrs. Bobbie's office where we had left them the previous afternoon. With these sacred bundles in hand, we would then make our way to the flag pole, which was located on the outskirts of the playground and approximately 30 yds from the shoulder of the aforementioned highway. When unfolded, each flag measured approximately 5ft x 3ft and was equipped with 2 well worn brass grommets at the top and bottom of the proximal edge.
The pole itself was approximately 30 ft tall, and constructed of 2 pieces of thick wall galvanized pipe protruding from a large trapezoid slab of concrete measuring approximately 3 ft at the base, 1 ft across the top, and approximately 2 ft tall. The uppermost joint of pipe had a slightly smaller diameter so that it was fit into the lower piece and was collar welded about 2/3 the way to the top. This was the only area I remember seeing any rust. The rest of the pole was shiny. In retrospect, I suspect it was probably fabricated by the high school AG shop. At the top of the pole was a pulley through which a small white nylon rope was threaded. The rope ran down the poll and was tied to itself so that it made a continuous loop. The tail of the rope loop was "figure eighted" around a cleat made of sucker rod which had been welded to the pole about head high to an 11 yr old boy. Just below the cleat, about waist high, the pole was as smooth as glass. This was because the flag pole had served as "home base" for countless games of tag. Kids would run to the pole and grab it with one arm outstretched and utilize the phenomenon of centripetal force to fling themselves around the flag base 180 degrees. The flag pole was also a common meeting place for several generations of 5th and 6th graders. Nary a day went by (from August to June) that some kid wouldn't utter the words "meet me at the flag pole".
Strategically located on the rope were 4 brass quick snaps which were inserted into the flag grommets. I can still remember the sound the brass snaps made as they contacted the hollow flag pole on ascent and descent. Whether or not the flag was attached made all the difference in the metallic tone. The story I want to tell took place on an ordinary weekday morning back in 1981, and centers around this flag pole, Hwy 82, and a total stranger that I had not seen prior, nor have seen since.
As was routine, my friend and I had attached first the American Flag, then the Texas Flag, and were slowly pulling down on the rope taking the flags to the top of the pole. Suddenly and without warning, a west bound car pulled off on the shoulder of the highway and a man we did not know stepped out. He then faced the ascending flags, braced himself at attention and stood there in a rigid salute until the flags came to full mast. I would like to omit this part, but in truth, my friend and I stood there trying to conceal our chuckles as this total stranger stood beside his car saluting the flags we had just erected. As soon as we tied off the rope, the man got back in his car without a word or a gesture, and drove off.
I have thought of this man many, many times over the past 30 plus years. I can only speculate as to his situation. Was he a Vietnam veteran? Did he lose friends, a brother, or an uncle in a foreign land? Was he the orphan of a WWII veteran? Did he have relatives in the Korean War? Or was he simply a proud American showing respect to our most iconic symbol of freedom (THE AMERICAN FLAG)?
I will never know who that man was, and he will never know how his patriotic act was forever burned into my memory. I will never forget the moment, and think of it every time I see the American Flag flying freely! What was seen as "funny" and "strange" by that 11 yr old kid is now seen as a proud display of American Patriotism by this 50yr old father of 3.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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