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By Myrtle Thompson

Guest columnist

In a day when the flag of the USA is being stomped on and burned, I want to give it the recognition it deserves.

I have crossed the ocean 20 times in my trips to and from three foreign countries as a missionary servant. Each time when I returned and saw that flag, I felt a sense of contentment. I was home.

Memorial Day is always a special time each year for those who love our country and its flag. Thank you, Suffolk News-Herald, for your June 1 edition of the paper. The flag ceremony at the A.J. Horton Memorial Cemetery with pictures of the multitude of flags was a wonderful reminder of why we have remained free as a country and as a people.

A small flag was placed at each grave honoring the member who served our country — some who did not survive, others who did. My husband served and survived. He graduated from high school just as World War II was starting. With his gown over his arm he went immediately to the  recruitment office to volunteer. The  memorial crosses are a reminder of those like him who fought to keep us free. He and others who survived lived with the honor of having served. We still honor them.

June 14 is officially Flag Day. Let’s fly our flags to show our loyalty and gratitude to God and the honor due “old glory.”

Just above the picture of the Horton memorial story was the bold headline “Stepson charged with murder.”

The people who commit this kind of crime don’t seem to understand that the country in which they live was founded on freedom to do the right things, not the wrong. That freedom was bought with a price. Its symbol is a flag that flies the colors red, white and blue. It deserves to be flown with honor and respect.

Maybe the visionary response I have is attached to the biblical values I hold. The significance to those colors represent the blood that has been shed for freedom. The white, a blank slate on which I write my future. Blue is a peaceful color. Let it bind together the peace bought with the blood and hope of continued freedom for a future generation. The 50 stars set on its background are lined up  to represent unity.

Sadly, not everyone sees the need to honor the flag. Some would replace or destroy it. Just a few months ago, we saw young people stomping on and burning our flag with no regard for its meaning. America has freedom because of those who gave their all for it. Someone has said our flag should be a reminder that freedom means an absence of slavery to another power.

Let’s apply the message of the apostle Paul in Galatians 5: “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, and do not let yourselves be burdened by a yoke of slavery ”

On June 14, let’s all fly this symbol of our freedom in America! Let’s guard our freedom to do right, not wrong.

 

Myrtle V. Thompson is 94, is a Suffolk writer and author. A book on Amazon tells about her life in three foreign countries. Her email address is mvtgrt@gmail.com