Tag: patriotism

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Abraham, Martin & Me

brent taylor

Originally posted on Bespoke:
It was the first time I ever prayed with my face touching the earth…and the first time I have ever had a prayer interrupted by a President of the United States. I lay prostrate on the green grass surrounding the Washington Monument, praying with ten other men in a tight circle, and a half million men all along the Washington Mall. It was October 4, 1997, a Saturday afternoon, and the Presidential helicopter with William Jefferson Clinton aboard, had just powered over our prayer huddle flying barely higher than the Washington Monument peak as if by… Continue reading Abraham, Martin & Me

Memoir, Nation, Patriotism3 Comments

Humility in a Sea of Tranquility

brent taylor

Neil Armstrong used to tell dry punchless jokes about the moon and then follow them up with, “Ahh…I guess you had to be there.” . Well, I was there…at least I felt deep down in my soul I was there with Neil. It was Sunday evening, July 20, 1969 and I stepped out of the back seat of a white Buick in our driveway which was surrounded by a cluster of canopied scrub oak. Walking out into the center of our front yard to escape the trees, I peered into the gathering of the evening as it mingled with day, … Continue reading Humility in a Sea of Tranquility

Memoir, Nation, Patriotism2 Comments

LBJ & Dad had No Idea What Fuse They Lit in 1965

brent taylor

My favorite childhood holiday through the wonder years of the Sixties was the 4th of July. I had no precocious notions of patriotism, not one noble sentiment of love for country. I just loved fireworks. Sparklers (Please…don’t plunge them deep into the retina of your sister…yes ma’am, I’ll be careful), lava-flowing glow worms that mutated from fire to molten ebony marking our driveway with a trail of patriotism identifiable in the concrete for years to come. Pop bottle rockets that never saw the translucent green glass of a pop bottle, only the synchronized whip like action of fleshy adolescent palms, … Continue reading LBJ & Dad had No Idea What Fuse They Lit in 1965