Tonight's picture was sent to me a while ago by Tricia, Mattie's favorite HEM/ONC nurse. Tricia created this beautiful scrap book collage of Mattie all on her own. I had no idea she was doing this, but when she snapped a photo of it and sent it to me, I was deeply touched. You might expect such a collage from a family member or friend, but your nurse? It is lovely to know that Mattie's nurse would want to capture her patient in her scrap book and that his life had great meaning to her. But then again, Mattie and Tricia had a special connection.... which I knew about since he told Tricia one day in the PICU that he "loved" her. Tricia incorporated bugs and touching sentiments into her page, and even used a red background to feature their photo. Red being Mattie's favorite color.
Quote of the day: On 21 December 1988, a terrorist bomb destroyed Pan American Airlines Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland,
killing all on board and 11 on the ground. The 270 Scottish stones which compose this memorial cairn commemorate those who lost their lives in this attack against America.
~ From the Arlington National Cemetery Website
On Sunday, Peter and I went to Arlington National Cemetery with friends of Peter's from work. They had wanted to tour the Cemetery for a while with us, and Sunday was the day we chose. Of course we never realized that it was going to be about 103 degrees with intense sun. How we toured around the Cemetery for four hours is beyond me, but we were motivated. The Cemetery is a truly incredible, hallowed, and historical ground and arboretum. One of the main sites to see at the Cemetery is the changing of the guard at the tomb of the unknowns. This is a ceremony of incredible ritual and meaning and I am so glad Peter video taped a portion of it below. I included some wonderful information about the Cemetery below. While at the Cemetery we also visited my paternal uncle who is buried at Arlington. My uncle was in the honor guard and was one of the sentinels who guarded the tomb of the unknowns. To be a sentinel you have to met certain physical proportions and as we were looking at these men, it was abundantly clear why my uncle fit those requirements. However, what one should also know is this position is a volunteer and prestigious position. One has to be very well versed and tested on all Arlington Cemetery facts. I found the details listed below very informative........
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Arlington National Cemetery is comprised of land that once belonged to George Washington Parke Custis, grandson of Martha Washington and
step-grandson of George Washington. Custis spent his life commemorating Washington
and built Arlington House on the 1,100-acre plantation as a memorial to the
first president. In 1857, Custis willed the property to his daughter Mary Anna
Randolph Custis, who was married to Robert E. Lee. After the Lee family vacated the property at the onset of the Civil War
in 1861, federal troops used the land as a camp and headquarters - beginning on
May 24, 1861. As the number of Civil War casualties was outpacing other local
Washington, D.C.-based cemeteries, the property became a burial location. The
first military burial took place on May 13, 1864, for Private William
Christman. On June 15, the War Department officially set aside approximately
200 acres of the property to use as a cemetery. By the end of the war,
thousands of service members and former slaves were buried here.
Arlington National Cemetery conducts between 27 and 30
funeral services each week day and between 6 and 8 services on Saturday. The
grounds of Arlington National Cemetery is comprised of 624 acres.
The Honor Guard at the Tomb of the Unknowns
The Tomb of the Unknowns is a burial vault containing the remains of three unidentified
service members, one each from World War I, World War II, and the Korean
War. A white marble sarcophagus sits
atop the vaults facing Washington, and is inscribed with three Greek
allegorical figures representing Peace, Victory, and Valor. The Unknown Soldier of World War I was
interred in the tomb on Armistice Day in 1921 after lying in state beneath the
Capitol dome after the arrival of his remains from France. The Unknown Soldiers of World War II and the
Korean War were buried on May 30, 1958, after lying in state and each receiving
the Medal of Honor. The Unknown Soldier
of the Vietnam War, interred and presented with the Medal of Honor in 1984, was
subsequently identified as Air Force 1st Lieutenant Michael J. Blassie. In 1998, Lieutenant Blassie’s remains were
disinterred from the Tomb of the Unknowns and reinterred near his family’s home
in St. Louis. Since then the Vietnam
vault has remained vacant. The tomb is
guarded continuously by the 3rd U.S. Infantry, the oldest active duty infantry
unit in the Army, also known as "The Old Guard." The Old Guard is the
Army's official ceremonial unit and escort to the president, and it provides
security for Washington in times of national emergency or civil disturbance.
To qualify to become a sentinel at the Tomb of the Unknowns
The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is guarded 24 hours a day,
365 days a year, and in any weather by Tomb Guard sentinels. Sentinels, all
volunteers, are considered to be the best of the elite 3rd U.S. Infantry
Regiment (The Old Guard), headquartered at Fort Myer, Va.
After members of the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment become
ceremonially qualified, they are eligible to volunteer for duty as sentinels at
the Tomb. If accepted, they are assigned to Company E of The Old Guard. Each
soldier must be in superb physical condition, possess an unblemished military
record and be between 5 feet, 10 inches and 6 feet, 4 inches tall, with a
proportionate weight and build. An interview and a two-week trial to determine
a volunteer's capability to train as a tomb guard is required.
During the trial phase, would-be sentinels memorize seven
pages of Arlington National Cemetery history. This information must be recited
verbatim in order to earn a "walk." A walk occurs between guard
changes. A daytime walk is one-half hour in the summer and one hour in the
winter. All night walks are one hour.
If a soldier passes the first training phase,
"new-soldier" training begins. New sentinels learn the history of
Arlington National Cemetery and the grave locations of nearly 300 veterans.
They learn the guard-change ceremony and the manual of arms that takes place
during the inspection portion of the Changing of the Guard. Sentinels learn to
keep their uniforms and weapons in immaculate condition.
The sentinels will be tested to earn the privilege of wearing
the silver Tomb Guard Identification Badge after several months of serving.
First, they are tested on their manual of arms, uniform preparation and their
walks. Then, the Badge Test is given. The test is 100 randomly selected
questions of the 300 items memorized during training on the history of
Arlington National Cemetery and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The would-be
badge holder must get more than 95 percent correct to succeed.
The Tomb Guard Identification Badge is a temporary award
until the badge-holding sentinel has honorably served at the Tomb of the
Unknown Soldier for nine months. At that time, the award can be made a
permanent badge, which may then be worn for the rest of a military career. The
silver badge is an upside-down, laurel-leaf wreath surrounding a depiction of
the front face of the Tomb. Peace, Victory and Valor are portrayed as Greek
figures. The words "Honor Guard" are shown below the Tomb on the
badge.
There are three reliefs, each having one relief commander
and about six sentinels. The three reliefs are divided by height so that those
in each guard change ceremony look similar. The sentinels rotate walks every
hour in the winter and at night, and every half-hour in the day during the
summer. The Tomb Guard Quarters is staffed using a rotating Kelly system. Each
relief has the following schedule: first day on, one day off, second day on,
one day off, third day on, four days off. Then, their schedule repeats.
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