When I realized that today is December 7th, it stirred within me a new meaning I experienced five years ago. Gary and I visited Pearl Harbor on the occasion of our twenty-fifth wedding anniversary.  The impact of seeing where all our fleet was docked on that fatal day when the Japanese bombed our Navy is life altering.  Especially the memorial that has been built over the Arizona gives the feeling of standing over "hallowed ground."  The colored circles where still today oil bubbles to the surface of the water and the visible outline of the ship underneath the memorial forever will tribute the lives of those taken on Dec. 7th of that fateful year.

One clear remembrance that I will carry with me always, was the soldier standing at the gate as visitors entered.  This soldier was a Pearl Harbor survivor and as I came through the gate I gave him a big hug and said, "thank you so much"....his eyes filled with tears as we found a moment shared that transcended generations.  May God help us never to forget our history and to always give thanks to those who have sacrificed for our freedoms.  God bless, my friends!