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 Greetings! You are reading an article from The Mudville Gazette. To reach the front page, with all the latest news and views, click the logo above or "main" below. Thanks for stopping by! December 25, 2004 Tending Distant FiresBy GreyhawkFar from hearth and home, watching What tales we'll tell When things grim Some distant sunset, vision fading Saluting fallen friends whose names
- Greyhawk,
Deployed far from home and hearth this Holiday season, awaiting a bit of cheer via comments: Never heard of this place till now!!! 67TH COMBAT SUPPORT HOSPITAL DOCS And those who wait:
Posted by Greyhawk / December 25, 2004 7:41 AM | Permalink 9 TrackBacksTending Distant Fires Far from hearth and home, watchingCold alone but not aloneOn distant shore and only wantingSafe return and little more [Read the missing part here.] - Greyhawk, -- Iraq, December 2004 Deployed far from home and hearth Read More Tending Distant Fires Far from hearth and home, watching Cold alone but not alone On distant shore and only wanting Safe return and little more Read More We say Merry Christmas. Greyhawk at Mudville Gazette has a list of those who are deployed on this Christmas Eve Night (the list includes him). Read More Hey, kuffar: Merry Christmas! What a great time of the year. You get to slow down and relax, surround yourself with loved ones, and enjoy peace and goodwill from pretty much everyone you meet. Not our soldiers overseas, though. They've... Read More Hey, kuffar: Merry Christmas! What a great time of the year. You get to slow down and relax, surround yourself with loved ones, and enjoy peace and goodwill from pretty much everyone you meet. Not our soldiers overseas, though. They've... Read More The National Review's got a pretty green border and dabs of red abound. Charles Johnson's LGF has a mini Christmas tree in the corner. Even the Drudge Report is in a festive mood with red/green. The Powerline guys have posted a pretty Christ... Read More I'm still waiting for my two siblings to awaken. I've already gotten some food in me and right now I'm sipping on some tea and looking at some soldier blogs. Instapundit points the way to a special letter from a... Read More Greyhawk is spending his Christmas in the sandbox, giving up the comfort of his own hearth and company of his wife and children for that of other Marines who selflessly serve. He sent this verse, reminding us that our ability... Read More I received this from Greyhawk of The Mudville Gazette. Greyhawk is currently serving in Iraq and Mrs. Greyhawk is keeping the home fires burning while Greyhawk himself is: Tending Distant Fires Far from hearth and home, watching Cold alone but... Read More 26 Comments |
November 26, 2010America@war [Greyhawk]
I think anyone who's ever pondered the "comment" option - once only available on blogs and bulletin boards, now ubiquitous on almost any web site - will appreciate this:
The so-called faculty of writing is not so much a faculty of writing as it is a faculty of thinking. When a man says, "I have an idea but I can't express it"; that man hasn't an idea but merely a vague feeling. If a man has a feeling of that kind, and will sit down for a half an hour and persistently try to put into writing what he feels, the probabilities are at least 90 percent that he will either be able to record it, or else realize that he has no idea at all. In either case, he will do himself a benefit. That's wisdom from the past, captured for posterity at the US Naval Institute, shared via the web on the institute's 137th anniversary. From their about page:
"The Naval Institute has three core activities," among them, History and Preservation: The Naval Institute also has recently introduced Americans at War, a living history of Americans at war in their own words and from their own experiences. These 90-second vignettes convey powerful stories of inspiration, pride, and patriotism. Take a look at the collection, and you'll see it's not limited to accounts from those who served on ships at sea, members of the other branches are well-represented. I'm fortunate to have met USNI's Mary Ripley, she's responsible for the institute's oral history program (and she's the daughter of the late John Ripley, whose story is told here). She also deserves much credit for their blog. ("We're not the Navy nor any government agency. Blog and comment freely.") We met at a milblog conference - Mary knew (and I would come to realize) that milbloggers are the 21st-century version of exactly what the US Naval Institute is all about. Once that light bulb came on in my head, I mentioned a vague idea for a project to her - milblogs as the 21st century oral history that they are. "Put that in writing," she said (of course - see first paragraph above!) - and here's part of the result. Shortly after the first tent was pitched by the American military in Iraq a wire was connected to a computer therein, and the internet was available to a generation of Americans at war - many of whom had grown up online. From that point on, at any given moment, somewhere in Iraq a Soldier, Sailor, Airman or Marine was at a keyboard sharing the events of his or her day with the folks back home. While most would simply fire off an email, others took advantage of the (then) relatively new online blogging platforms to post their thoughts and experiences for the entire world to see. The milblog was born - and from that moment to this stories detailing everything from the most mundane aspects of camp life to intense combat action (often described within hours of the event) have been available on the web... And et cetera - but since you're reading this on a milblog, you probably knew that. And you know that milblogs aren't just blogs written by troops at war, that many friends, family members, and supporters likewise documented their story of America at war online in near-real time, as those stories developed. The diversity in membership of that group is broad, the one thing we all have in common is the impulse to make sense of the seemingly senseless, and communicate the tale - for each of us that impulse was strong enough to overcome whatever barriers prevent the vast majority of people from doing the same. Everyone at some point has some vague idea they believe should be shared - we were the people who, from some combination of internal and external urging, found and spent those many half hours persistently trying to write it down. But where will all that be in another 137 years? Or five or ten, for that matter. That's something I've asked myself since at least 2004 - when I wrote this:
Membership in the ghost battalion has grown in the years since, and an ever growing majority of those abandoned-but-still-standing sites are vanishing. Have you checked out Lt Smash's site lately? How about Sgt Hook's? If you're a long-time milblog reader you know the first widely-read milblog from Operation Iraq Freedom and the first widely-read milblog from Afghanistan are both gone from the web. If you're a relative newcomer to this world you may never even have heard of them - or the dozens upon dozens of others who carried forth the standard they set down. If you have a vague notion that something should be done about that, (a notion I've heard expressed more than once...) then you and I and the good folks at the US Naval Institute are in agreement. Preserving the history documented by the milbloggers is just one of the goals of the milblog project, the once-vague idea that we're now making real. And it's a big idea, if I say so myself - too big to explain in one simple blog post, so stand by for more. Likewise, it's too big a task to be accomplished by just one person. So if you're a milblogger (and exactly what is a milblogger? is a topic for much further discussion on its own) I'm asking for your help. All I'll really need is just a little bit (maybe just one or two of those half hours...) of your time, and your willingness to tell the tale. We've already made history, it's time to save it. (More to follow...) Posted 4:02 PM | Permalink |
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The Mudville Gazette is the on-line voice of an American warrior and his wife who stands by him. They prefer to see peaceful change render force of arms unnecessary. Until that day they stand fast with those who struggle for freedom, strike for reason, and pray for a better tomorrow.
 
 
 Furthermore, I will occasionally use satire or parody herein. The bottom line: it's my house. I like having visitors to my house. I hope you are entertained. I fight for your right to free speech, and am thrilled when you exercise said rights here. Comments and e-mails are welcome, but all such communication is to be assumed to be 1)the original work of any who initiate said communication and 2)the property of the Mudville Gazette, with free use granted thereto for publication in electronic or written form. If you do NOT wish to have your message posted, write "CONFIDENTIAL" in the subject line of your email. Original content copyright © 2003 - 2011 by Greyhawk. Fair, not-for-profit use of said material by others is encouraged, as long as acknowledgement and credit is given, to include the url of the original source post. Other arrangements can be made as needed. Contact: greyhawk at mudvillegazette dot com  Tending Distant Far from hearth and home, watching What tales we'll tell When things grim Some distant sunset, vision fading Saluting fallen friends whose names - Greyhawk, Baghdad, December 2004 |
Merry Christmas, Greyhawk. Be safe, sir.
Check out the last link, for Sarah at Trying to Grok. It's pointing to Tweak's World instead...
Thanks for this great list!!!
Merry Christmas to You, Greyhawk and Mrs. Greyhawk. Thanks for your service - may the Angels be with you both!
Dear Greyhawk,
My Dad was a WWII Vet, my oldest brother a Marine (joined as enlisted then retired as a Major) my middle brother, was Navy, my youngest brother, AirForce, my cousin (like sister to me) married Career Navy. I married a Marine (forced to join or go to jail, but the Marines did their best, he just wasn't redeemable) and my daughter's Dad was a Marine (met him right after he got back from Viet Naum he was not ready to settle down). I said all that to let you know I am very very grateful for you and you fellow service men. I have some idea of all that you do.
I have been guilty of coming by and reading your blog almost daily, but I have only posted once or twice. I don't know how to tell you how much you have enriched my life and made me stop and think. I can't put into words the profound respect and love I feel for you and your Wonderful Wife and Family. I have your name on a list and I pray for you often. Merry Christmas please come home safely.
Merry Christmas to you and your family. I read your blog every day and have especially enjoyed your photos from Germany (we were in Mannheim). I hope you all will soon be together again. Stay safe.
Christmas eve eight years ago was very sad. This Christmas eve is sad because so many of you are not home with your families. Surely you will be home next Christmas eve.Maybe you can have Christmas when you do get home.Hopefully in the near future.
Merry Christmas Hawk.
My prayers go out to you, your brothers and sisters in arms, and all the familys/loved ones.
Being away from all those you love during the holidays is never easy, as you know all too well. But the memories of other holidays, holidays together....the laughter, surprise, the joy.....those are to be treasured.
God Bless you all during this holiday (and always!)
OWITS,
We always remember Greyhawk's brother on this day. It is doubly sad today. We have a special ornament in remeberance to him, a Chevy Nomad, like the one he use to cruise in.
We love you all, and we will be spending many Christmas eves with you in the future. XXXXOOOO
Merry Christmas from a retired Coastie to you, Greyhawk & Mrs. Greyhawk. May God grant you success in your deployment, a swift return home, and safety throughout.
Merry Christmas to the Greyhawk family! God bless you. Thanks for the list. I just spent about an hour posting to them. A perfect way to spend some of my Christmas Eve. I wish I could do MORE!
Our school just sent a ton of phone cards and goodie boxes to our troops and I have a couple I know personally I send to. But I never feel like I do enough for all our warriors. I pray with my kids every night for yall.
God bless you Greyhawk and keep you safe.
God bless you Greyhawk family for staying strong.
Greyhawk- thanks for doing this, and thank you to everyone who has left comments. Merry CHristmas to you.
Merry Christmas to the Greyhawk family. You will be in our prayers tonight on Christmas Eve just like every night.
Merry Christmas to the Greyhawk family. I am guilty of reading you everyday and never saying thanks. So thank you for all you do. Although I know it is not much given your sacrifice for us but even though you are far from you family and friends this Christmas I do hope you have a joyful and peaceful Christmas.
I also want to thank you for your Christmas gift to us. That is the gift of peace, safety, freedom and liberty. These gifts do not come with wrappings and bows and we can never repay in kind to you what you give to us this Christmas. However, these gifts mean more to us then you will ever know. Thanks for serving, protecting and allowing us to celebrate Christmas this year and for years to come. We are wishing you a safe, quick journey home to your family and friends.
Thats a promise Mrs GH. You, Mr GH and all the young GHs.
Merry Christmas and a big thank you to you and your family for your service.
Way to go, Grey. I just posted the list, because our soldiers need to hear from as many of us as possible how invaluable their service is, and how we miss them at this special time of year.
Thanks, Greyhawk, and Merry Christmas.
Merry Christmas lil' bro, s-i-l, & all the young'uns (& large chocolate dog & not-so-large yellow one). We miss you guys lots and lots. May you all have a blessed Christmas, even under the circumstances. We are always praying for you all. GH, thanks for all you are doing and thanks for being you. S-i-l, you're doing an awesome job with all of this. (What was that you said about not being the writer in the family?) We are very proud of all of you. Much love, auntyk
Thanks for the encouraging words, and Merry Christmas to you and yours from Baghdad!
btw, thanks for the link too...keep up the great work.
It never fails to amaze me. You and your family are the best of the best. You must know that you are loved. We support you, my friend and we salute your family, without whom you could not be able to have such a wonderful attitude as I've seen on your blog about going and being gone from them over so many important occasions like birthdays and holidays.
May you remain safe and return home to find the love and hope you richly deserve.
To your family, God Bless you and keep you. May he grant you strength in this hour of separation and remind you of the most important things at this time: Love and devotion.
Yours,
Kat-Missouri
Merry Christmas and best wishes for a great New Year when your family is once again together. God bless you all.
http://www.brian.mcgovernville.com/
http://bootsonground.blogspot.com/
Boots on Ground is stateside blog. Was in Iraq long ago and is due to return.
Definitely add the other Mrs G.
Merry Christmas. You are all in my prayers.
Merry Christmas, Greyhawk, and thanks for all you're doing for us over there. God bless you and your family, and here's hoping that you're all together again in '05.
Merry Christmas, Greyhawk and family!
http://www.67cshdocs.com/index.htm
Sus sent me that link. Don't think that I saw it in the list. It's a bunch of Docs from the 67th Combat Support Hospital (from Wurzburg) in Iraq.
They recently had to treat the wounded from the Marez DFAC bombing.