R.I.P. – Peabea's Potpourri – Photos.Digiscrapping.Crafts

I apologize in advance because this is a very long post…hope you can read it all the way to the end where I honor my POW/MIA. Thanks…

And rest is needed, I guess. Over the Memorial week-end, we went to the lake to open the camper and put the boat in. We went on a Wednesday…it really needed mowed. Our son and daughter-in-law helped put the boat in and our son mowed. We couldn’t open the barn/shed because it had settled and a tree truck was pushing it up. So our sweet daughter-in-law said get me a saw, and she fixed it for my hubby. (He has emphysema and can do physical labor, but with the warmer weather not so good). She dug, and sawed and then the ramp to the shed to get the golf cart out could be moved back and the doors now open. She did it and didn’t even ruin her manicure. 🙂

Anyway, the rest of the story. lol. See the ramp to the barn? It has a piece of warped wood that you can’t see in the picture. My DIL had suggestd to hubby that it be cut in a rounded edge and then he wouldn’t have to replace the whole piece of wood. Well on Thursday, when I took the dog out, I didn’t realize the hubby had put a couple pieces of wood in front of the barn (you’d think I would have seen them on the way to the back of the shed to walk the dog in the grass, but if I did, I didn’t think much of it). Anyway, when I turned to walk back, I stumbled over the wood and fell against the ramp where the warped piece of wood is sticking up. The dog pulled the leash out of my hand as I fell. I was sure he’d run away since he likes to run, but nope, bless his heart, he came back to lay down by me as if to say…”okay, guess we’re laying down now, and he just looked at me.” He waited until I could get back up. It hurt right at the impact, but I thought, “okay, not too bad.” When I got back in the camper, I told the hubby, thank God I didn’t break a rib. Also told him should have listened to the DIL and cut the edge. (of course I had to make him the bad guy) Not. 🙂

Anyway, as the day wore on, it did hurt very much and I either have bruised, cracked or broken ribs. So, yes, rest has been the order, but that’s hard for me to do. Thanks be to God that I can breathe without having to take small short breaths so that tells me it could possibly not be broken and just bruised. I’ve been told, could take weeks to heal. So, rest I’ve been trying to do, but haven’t succeeded very well. Today is to be a day of rest according to God’s law and to keep the Sabboth so today, I’ll try that. 🙂

We did get to venture out on the boat and the rest of the week was nice weather, and we had a nice memorial week-end. Razzy was happy to once again find his favorite spot on the boat. My nephew stopped by and we took them out fishing, and then stopped by later on at a campfire with friends.

Hope everyone had a safe and nice Memorial Week-end. Thanks to all who served to keep us safe in America.

Prayers to the family of my POW who has never been returned home to our soil. R.I.P. John Conger. His story:

John Edward Conger Jr. (1950-1978) – Sergeant First Class, US Army Vietnam

The Virtual Wall for Warren County, Ohio from The Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington D.C.
Photos: contributed by Amy Cole on 2 Oct 2010
Memorial maker is located at Arlington National Cemetery Section MF Grave 10
In Memory of
John Edward Conger Jr.
SFC
US Army
Vietnam
Jan 7 1950
Jul 31 1978
“Soldier Now Declared Dead But Mother Not Convinced,” obituary, The Western Star (Lebanon, Ohio), August 16, 1978, p. 12A
“A Lebanon Soldier, missing in action in Vietnam since early 1969, has been declared dead, a change that his mother said “has not convinced me.”
“It may be final to the Army but not to me,” declared Mrs. Bertha Conger, concerning the fate of Staff Sgt. John E. conger Jr. “I still have hopes this latest news is not final.”
Mrs. Conger, who lives in Cedar Ridge Apartments, Lebanon, was notified in early August about the change of her son’s status. The message came from the Department of the Army and said in part:
“All available information pertaining to his status has been given careful consideration. The circumstances attendant too his disappearance, plus the lapse of time without any further information to support a presumption of survival, can lead only to the conclusion that he is no longer alive.
“Further, the debriefing of returned prisoners of war following the ceasefire agreement of Jan. 27, 1973, had revealed no information of his fate. Therefore, a determination has been made by the Department of the Army to change his status from missing in action to presumed dead, as of July 31, 1978.”
Mrs. Conger said there are still too many unanswered questions for her to accept this decision. she noted nothing was ever found to identify him, although the remains of others in his platoon were later discovered.
“I feel one day I will know the final answer one way of another,” she said. “My husband died in 1974 not knowing what happened to John; I feel I will find out. Perhaps this is wishful thinking on my part but I can’t give up hope.”
Mrs. Conger admits she has no thoughts or theories on where her son would be if he is still alive.
She commented that the Vietnam War was of political nature and the United States should never have entered. But on the other hand, she does not believe America should establish diplomatic relations with such a recent enemy; at least not under the present situation.
“Before this is done we should be allowed to send in personnel to look for our missing boys,” she said.
As far as sending aid to Vietnam, Mrs. Conger sad she feels, “we have enough to do at home without giving our money away.”
“We don’t owe a thing to Vietnam,” she stressed.
Her son was raised in Lebanon and attended local schools. He enlisted in the Army June of 1964 and left for Vietnam on Dec. __ of that year. He served as a radio technician with the 19th Infantry Battalion for about a month before the skirmish in which he never returned.
Mrs. Conger said there is one final honor due her son. She will be presented his medals which are being sent from Washington in the near future.”

POEM FROM A MOTHER (my Poem for John by Trabonet (Peabea))

Bring my baby home…..at least for a day
Even if I can’t wipe the tears away –

At least I can see him one more time…
And then in my heart, I’ll know he’s fine –

He was so young when he went away….
he had no idea it would be such a long stay –

He has suffered so much for you and I…
please bring my baby home before I die –

I just need to gaze on his face once more…
So long since he left our shore –

I’ll hold him in such a long embrace…
Ahhhh..just to see that face –

It’s weathered, It’s worn…He looks so forlorn –

He has longed to be home for so many years…
He long ago forgot how to cry many tears –

He doesn’t even know or remember who he set out to be…
He only remembers that he saved you and me And
the wonderful land once more that our forefathers named

when they reached this shore
“AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL”
“AMERICA THE FREE”

That’s what my baby did for you and me –

PLEASE SET HIM FREE

He didn’t ask much…
He was so proud to go do his duty with the rest of the crowd –

But he just wants to come home now and rest…
He is so weary –

(my graphics at the time)

You can also see his site that I made as Trabonet when I was on Geocities before it closed. It has now been taken and posted here (without my permission, but they did keep it mostly intact). HERE: http://www.reocities.com/trabonet/jcjr.html

~hugs~

Peabea

Love that you stopped by. 🌺 🙏 🌠🌠🌠 🌈

If you like my Scripture graphic, you’re welcome to take a copy.