The "Jeopardy Answer Led To Astonishing Story" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Watching two of my favorite TV Quiz Shows, Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy. I know that Wheel of Fortune is seen all over the world, but not sure if Jeopardy has the coverage that is given to it's sister program.  Many may not know that at the end of the quiz show Jeopardy, a final answer is given to which the three contestants must think of the question that could be asked to yield the final answer.  As the show was coming to a conclusion, I watched and listened to see how many of the three contestants had the correct question to "Final Jeopardy".  In this case the final answer was...How many steps does the guard take during his walk across the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.  For those not knowing what the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier may be, it is a monument in the Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, USA that holds the remains of those who died fighting for the USA without ever being identified.  The U.S. Unknowns who are interred here hold the award of the Medal of Honor, the Victoria Cross and several other foreign nations' highest service awards.  Well, all three contestants missed it and Alex Trebek, the host gave the final question of "What is 21".  The 21 also refers to the twenty-one gun salute which is the highest honor given any military or foreign dignitary.  But that doesn't begin to tell the tale of those who guard the tomb.  

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington, Virginia, USA

The soldier guarding the tomb also takes 21 seconds to hesitate after his about face after crossing in front of the tomb and heading back across once again.  He carries his rifle on the shoulder away from the tomb and moves the rifle to the other shoulder as he executes the about face.  The guards are changed every thirty minutes, twenty-four hours a day, every day of the year.  Now, I kind of knew most of that information, but as I read on I learned more about the guards that I found remarkable.  To be a guard the person must be between 5' 10" tall with a waist size no larger than 30".  They must commit 2 years of their life to guard the tomb, live in a barracks under the tomb and cannot drink any alcohol on or off duty for the rest of their lives.  They are not allowed to swear in public for the rest of their lives and cannot disgrace the uniform or the tomb in any way.  After two years the guard is given a wreath pin that is worn on their lapel signifying they served as guard of the tomb.  

The tomb has been guarded every minute of every day since 1930.

If they disobey any of the rules, they must return the pin.  There are currently 400 who wear the pin.  A few interesting facts about the uniform they wear are: (1) The shoes are made with very thick soles to keep the heat and cold from their feet, (2) There are metal heel plates that extend to the top of the shoe in order to make the loud click as they come to a halt, (3) The uniform may have no wrinkles, folds or lint on it. (4) The guards dress in front of a full-length mirror and must spend five hours a day getting the uniform ready for guard duty.  Another rule of being a guard is the first half-year a guard cannot talk to anyone or watch TV.  All off-duty time is spent studying the 175 notable people laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery and the guard must memorize who they are and where they are interred in the cemetery.  One thing I read was that in 2003, during Hurricane Isabelle, and with TV stations broadcasting the danger of the hurricane, the guards never missed a beat.  The tomb has been patrolled every minute of every day since 1930.  I only hope those interred in the tomb appreciate the service these unique individuals give to their country.  One thing I couldn't find was whether all guards are males.  I'm not sure that any of the rules would keep a female from being a guard, but I might be missing something.  I'd like to believe that any one of my grandchildren, male or female, could one day become a guard at the Tomb of The Unknown Soldier.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.  

The "...The Most Memorable 272 Words Ever Uttered!" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Reading for the umpteenth time the words to one of the greatest speeches in the history of the United States; The Gettysburg Address.  About 60 miles and an hour or so away from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, via the original Route 30, sits the Soldiers National Cemetery on Cemetery Hill.  

The Soldiers' National Monument.

It was on November 19, 1863, 155 years ago, that Edward Everett delivered his two-hour oration, from memory, on the Battle of Gettysburg and its significance.  That was followed by a hymn composed especially for the ocassion by B.B. French.  After the hymn ended, the tall, slender, stately man in the knee-length jacket, President Abraham Lincoln rose and walked to the dias.  He spoke for less than two minutes; 272 words to be exact.  His "remarks" are recognized as some of the most memorable in the history of our nation.  In his remarks he said that the "world will little note, nor long remember what we say here."  Wow!  Even after a century and a half, his remarks endure.  One historian even said that Lincoln's words stand as "the world's foremost statement of freedom and democracy and the sacrifices required to achieve and defend them."  Over the years many have written countless words about Lincoln's brief speech and many have spread untruths about it.  

President Abraham Lincoln giving his remarks at Gettysburg, PA.

One person wrote that the President jotted his remarks on the back of an envelope while riding the train to Gettysburg, whereas it has been proven that he composed his speech in Washington, D.C.  Another wrote that Mr. Everett's lengthy speech was an imposition where in the mid-19th century this was more normal than not.  (Aren't you glad you don't live in the mid-19th century!)  Another writer said that Everett's voice was sweet and expertly modulated while Lincoln's voice was high pitched to the point of being shrill and his Kentucky accent offended some eastern sensibilities, but he was good at rhythmic delivery with meaningful inflections as well as having an emphatic delivery.  He was actually interrupted by applause five times.  

This monument commemorates Lincoln's Gettysburg Address,
November 19, 1863.  The Address was delivered about 300
yards from this spot along the upper Cemetery drive.  The
site is now marked by the Soldiers' National Monument.

It is worth noting that President Lincoln composed his remarks without the aid of speech- writers or advisers and that Lincoln will be distin- guished from every other president, with the exception of Jefferson, in that we can be certain that he wrote every word to which his name is attached.  Today there are five known copies of his speech in Lincoln's own handwriting, each with a different text, and named for the people who first received them: Nicolay, Hay, Everett, Bancroft and Bliss.  Two copies were written before he delivered his speech with one probably being the copy he read on November 19.  The remaining copies were written months later for benefit events.  It was also said that there was no way possible that he could have handwritten a copy on the train since the rail line was known for its bumpy Civil War-era tracks.  Carol and I travel from Lancaster toward Gettysburg quite often, since our daughter and her family live near Frederick, Maryland.  We pass over the railroad tracks in New Oxford, Pennsylvania every visit and every time I drive over the tracks I think of that day in 1863 that President Lincoln traveled this same route on his way to Gettysburg.  The remarks that Abraham Lincoln gave that day 155 years ago to dedicate the Soldiers National Cemetery will never be forgotten and will live on forever.  Following is the text of Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address:

Fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.  Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting-place for those who here gave their lives that this nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.  But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate — we can not consecrate — we can not hallow — this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember, what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us — that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion — that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain — that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.

With the Civil War in its third year, the nation was enduring a staggering cost in human life, and Lincoln felt compelled to offer a moral justification for the war.  The Gettysburg Address you just read was delivered on November 19, 1863.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

The "Oh Say Can You See!!" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Sitting with my two sons at Kunkle Field in Mt. Joy, Pennsylvania preparing to watch Lancaster Newspaper's Jr. Midget baseball finals.  The newspaper has been sponsoring an end-of-the year baseball tournament for the best teams in three different age categories in Lancaster County.  The tournament began in 1944.  Players in the Midget-Midget category (ages 9-12 yrs. old), Junior-Midget category (ages 13-14) and Midget category (ages 15-16) battle it out to see which team is the best in the county.  Tonight's game pits the Manheim Township Streaks (a team I coached years ago) against the Mountville Angels.  My oldest son coaches in Mountville, PA and my grandson plays on my son's team, but my son also played for the Manheim Township team when he was growing up, so its tough watching the game and not knowing which team to cheer for.  I taught in the Manheim Township school district for years, but I went to all my grandson's games this year so I too am having a tough time deciding who to cheer for.  But, none of that matters to this story, since this story deals with something totally different.  Just before the game began, a young man, acting as the announcer for the game and sitting a few rows behind us in the bleachers, asked everyone to stand and remove their ball caps as a young woman sang our National Anthem.  And ... everyone stood and removed their caps as she sang.  I too sang along, since I have been doing that for years.  Not loud, but just loud enough so that I could hear it.  For you see, the anthem that we sing, or listen to, is the story of a flag that continued to wave throughout one of the most famous battles in American history.  

1918 World Series game and the
National Anthem is being sung.

On that day many years ago Francis Scott Key, who was better at writing lyrics than music, put his description of the battle of Fort McHenry to an old English tune that had a lot less to do with patriotism than it did with booze and women.  Its been almost 100 years since our National Anthem was first played at a sporting event that really meant anything.  Yes, the anthem had been played as far back as 1862 at a game or two, but didn't seem to mean as much as it did in the first game of 1918 World Series between the Boston Red Sox and the Chicago Cubs when the song was played.  The date was September 5 and the newspapers were dominated with news from WWI.  The Cubs were hosting Babe Ruth and the Red Sox in Comiskey Park rather than newly opened Weegham Park (later called Wrigley Park) since Comiskey could hold more people.  Ruth was pitching a 1-0 shutout when in the 7th inning a band from the nearby Navy training station began to play "The Star-Spangled Banner."  This time something happened that was far different than any other time when the "Star Spangled Banner" was played.  Players took off their caps, as a 12-piece band played, and faced the flag in right field.  That was all the players except Red Sox infielder Fred Thomas.  He happened to be in the Navy at the time, but was given an exception to play in the World Series.  Fred didn't remove his cap, but gave a military salute to the flag instead.  A few fans began to sing along and by the time the song came to it's climax, the stadium was awash with patriotism.  The stadium exploded with thunderous applause.  The navy band leader at the time was John Philip Sousa, but he wasn't at the stadium that day.  He had recently arranged the version that the band played that day as well as the same tune that the young woman sang tonight at Kunkle Field.  It wasn't until 1931 that the song was officially designated our National Anthem by Congress and President Herbert Hoover.  When the series returned to Boston that year, it was played at their stadium also.  The Sox owner was so impressed with the way the song quieted the rowdy fans that the next season it was played at the opening game.  From then on it was played at all opening day games as well as the World Series games.  Then during WWII major league teams began to play it at all games.  Still sends a chill down my spine and I keep telling myself that I have to volunteer to sing it at a local baseball game before its too late.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.