Lesson Purpose: To show that love is a powerful influence in our life and is the cement that bonds families together.
The Lesson
"It is impossible to love and to be wise."Francis Bacon
"Better is a dinner of herbs where love is, than a stalled ox and hatred therein." BIBLE, Proverbs 15.17
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." BIBLE, John 3:16
"And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment." BIBLE, Mark 12:30
"And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." BIBLE, Math 22:39
Where did it all get started?
Here's a little poem I wrote to my wife:
Adam Said
To Pat on Mothers Day
Saturday, May 8, 1999
Adam said, Eve my dear,
You've eaten the forbidden fruit.
She looked at him and answered back,
Yes, I'm getting the boot!
He said to her, Eve my dear,
I like your skin and hair,
And I get a little tingle
When with those eyes you stare.
She said to him, I’ll miss you so
When Father kicks me out.
Now don't you ever think of me;
Never give a pout!
He answered back with some regret,
I’ll dearly miss you too,
If I didn't have a lot more ribs
I'm sure with you I’d go.
That's right, she said,
You do have ribs a plenty more to spare,
But won't you miss this little rib?
Won't you miss my stare?
She stared at him, he looked away,
Then rubbed his perfect tummy,
You know, he said, I have a pain,
I'm really getting hungry.
She bid him come and sat him down,
And put his lunch before him.
He ate the fruit and felt real good,
"I'm going with you, honey!"
What is love?
For our purposes love is a strong affection for another, or others, based on family ties, personal ties, or the affectionate ties of lovers.
Love may be admiration based on the qualities or common interest of others.
Types of love are: The love of a child by its mother. The love of God as the Benefactor of mankind. The love of a young man and a young women who are engaged to be married to each other.
Love is the basis of survival
Think about it. A child requires extensive care from the day it is born until well into the teenage years. If a mother got tired of caring for the child and had no love for it, the care of the child would be left to others. If others did not surface, the child would parish.
Unfortunately, some children are abandoned everyday. Fortunately, most children are not abandoned.
Back to Korea
My infantry company in Korea during an attack on the Chinese picked up two Soviet trucks manufactured under the World War II Lend Lease Program, two dogs that we had to watch over or they would be eaten by our Korean friends, and two young boys, brothers who had lost their parents.
We loved those Russian trucks. They were much more reliable than ours. They were exactly the same as General Motors trucks made during World War II. So what happened? The army took them away from us because they were not regulation issue. When we came down from the freezing top of Hill 1243, the highest mountain on the line, our US trucks had all been damaged by the freezing weather and Service Company had to take us off the line.
The two dogs disappeared and ended up in a ROK army kettle.
Yes, we lost the two boys too, now dressed in cowboy suits we got them through Sears and Roebuck. The American Red Cross found their grandparents. They took the boys from our dangerous combat area. The love of the American Red Cross workers for the Korean people and the love of the boys’ grandparents gave the youngsters the bond they needed for survival in an awful war.
War is the breeding ground for the alphabet soup of human indignities
I had five Korean soldiers in my infantry platoon. One day, Ree Tay Hee was very sad. He had reason to be sad too. He had lost his father and two brothers to the North Koreans. He assumed they were dead. His thirteen-year-old sister and his mother lived in Seoul, which had been flattened by the North Koreans, the American Army, the Chinese, and then the American Army again. In fact it was my division behind the Marines who did the last flattening when they executed MacArthur’s daring attach from the sea at Inchon.
Ree Tay Hee’s mother and sister were supported by his older brother who worked on the Korean Railroad. He fell under the train and was decapitated. Now mother and daughter were alone with no means of support except, possibly, prostitution.
The story doesn't end there
When I got home from Korea, I got a letter from a man named Chick. I believe that he was from Tucson Arizona and I would give anything to be able to find that brave man. Chick was a section leader and a forward observer for the 81 millimeter mortars. He replaced me as forward observer when our platoon sergeant was hit and I became Platoon Sergeant at age nineteen.
Chick told me in his letter that Ree Tay Hee had been seriously wounded in the Iron Triangle. The situation couldn't have gotten worse. I don't know what happened to that family. I only know that I still have a great love for them and wish I could have been of help over the years. Let's hope that someone cared and gave them the love and aid they needed.
There is a difference between the Korean People and Americans in regard to that War. When, I got home from Korea, nobody gave a hell of beans. Most people didn't even seem to know the war was on if you judged by their actions. Nobody but immediate family members and friends cared when American blood was spilled there. Even today, it's mainly the Korean veterans who care about the sacrifices made there.
But the Korean people have a great love for the men from many lands that saved them from the North Koreans and the Chinese hoards. I've been back to Korea twice since the war. The first visit back was a traumatic experience. My talkative companion who was in Vietnam remained quiet while we flew over the mountains on which I had fought. He knew what I was doing. I was remembering every detail of the war as I knew it.
I left the hotel in Seoul and took the shuttle down town. I went in to a shop and told them I had fought there. They showed me a ton of love and wouldn't let me take the shuttle back to the hotel. The owner got his car and drove me back. The Korean Government continually welcomes veterans back to their country, gives them a banquet and a special medal and helps them tour the old battlefields.
That's the difference. They care. And care is just another way to spell LOVE.
A poem dedicated to a loving man
I write poetry. You can read my poetry and see my photographs of the Korean War if you go to http://www.tjbooks.com. Here is a poem I wrote about an extremely brave machine gun sergeant who had love for his family and his men.
Machine Gun Sergeant
Saturday, April 2, 1999
Below the Wachon Reservoir,
We walked along the river,
And then across the fields.
Dieter said, "This is where
The air force caught the Chinese
With there carts and horses."
"That's the hill
Where the machine-gun sergeant
Climbed to help his men.
He was supposed to
Go home that day,
Not a war to win.
"The sergeant said,
'I know I don't have to fight,
I can stay back here and watch,
But my men are scared,
And their sergeant is new,
I’ll lead them one more time.'"
Dieter lowered his head
And then he said,
"The fire was very heavy.
They took the hill
That bloody day,
But the sergeant never made it."
We found a house
Still intact.
We were very much surprised.
An octagon with a center patio,
Where a family
Once cooked their meals.
This must have been
A happy place
Before the armies came.
Little children
At mother's knee,
An abundant life they had.
Dieter said,
"He has two kids."
I said,
"I thought him dead."
I looked at Probe,
His familiar name,
I said,
"Please tell me more."
I saw a tear run down his cheek,
It wasn't there before.
The sky was clear,
A glorious day,
And we walked the fields some more.
We found a can from Russia,
And Kowalski read the label.
"I know the town
Where this was made,
I know who made this ammo."
I looked at Probe,
He looked at me,
And this is what he said,
"The machine-gun sergeant
Was hit in the groin,
He said, 'I’d be better dead.'"
No workers toiled
In the beautiful fields,
The war had done its dirt.
I wondered where the families were,
Were they dead
Or hurt?
Tomorrow,
We go back on the line,
To Heartbreak Ridge they say.
I looked at Probe
And this I said,
"At least we've got today."
The sergeant
Didn't have to fight.
He'd done his job well,
But he climbed the hill,
And got maimed for life.
How could he think so ill?
When it's time to go home,
It's time to go,
To play with fate is bad.
"He's the bravest man I know,"
Said Probe,
"He did it to be right."
I said, "What about his
Wife and kids?
What about their plight?"
"He had no choice,"
Said Probe,
"He had to fight."
We walked along
The dusty road
That led us back to camp.
I thought,
"How brave he was!"
I think of him a lot.
Here's another little poem about that war.
967Saturday, April 3, 1999
Now, that's a lot of lemons
If your making lemonade,
But if your counting ants,
It would hardly make a parade.
How about watermelons?
It would make quite a pile.
You could go from May through February
If you ate three each day.
How many American men died
In the 17th Infantry
Regimental Combat Team
In Korea?
The many Korean boys that served with us and died were not counted. I don't have the count on the Nigerians either.
You can't believe the love that Korean veterans have for each other. Going through life's trials with another human being brings with it a tremendous love for that person. Probe Dieter and I can read each other's minds even though he is in New York State and I'm in Idaho. I went home to Utah one time and I said to myself, Probe Dieter has been here. When I got back to Iowa, where I was teaching engineering at Iowa State University, I picked up the telephone and said, "Hey, Probe! Have you been looking for me?"
"Yes," he said. "I was in Utah and I couldn't find you."
On several occasions, I've picked up the telephone knowing it was Probe on the other line.
What is the most traumatic loss in a person's life?
You probably know that it is when a person loses his or her spouse. The relationship grows from the initial infatuation, to the love of courtship and marriage, and the increased love that bonds them together from living through life's trials and joys.
Each child that comes into a home, brings with it an enduring, eternal love. A touch of pain enters when the child leaves the nest, but more love comes as grandchildren are born. It's a process that never ceases until war or devastation from nature destroys the family. We see that everyday now, don't we. Some family links die off because no children were born for various reasons. Fortunately for mankind, the process goes on.
"No greater love has any man than to lay down his life for a friend."
Here is another story of love from my Korean experience.
The love here was for a stepbrother. We had been in a firing mission. We fired white phosphorous recoilless rifle shells into Chinese positions and then fired the 81 millimeter mortars shells upon the scattering Chinese. A major from division had come up on the line and ordered the fire mission. It was not a pleasant experience to see the young Chinese soldiers toss bodies like cordwood out of the positions they were digging.
Finally, the major told us what a fine job of killing our fellow men we had done, and left.
Six or seven of us stood talking after the slaughter. A corporal from Oklahoma told us that he had orders to go home but that he was not leaving until his stepbrother got his orders to go home too. His stepbrother was in the same company, Company B, 17th Infantry Regimental Combat Team.
If the brother had been a full brother, he would not have been allowed in the same infantry company. We told the Corporal to go home. We were getting the heaviest concentration of enemy artillery fire during the history of the Korean War (according to "Stars and Stripes."). We told him he could be killed and that it was better to let his stepbrother catch up with him.
The Corporal said, "If I was going to be killed, I would have been killed by now. I'm staying!"
Now, infantry men have their degree of superstition. We told him to take back what he said. We told him anybody could be killed at any time. We also told him that it was not only bad luck to say that you wouldn't be killed but that it was even worse luck not to go home when ordered.
The Corporal had a great love for his stepbrother. He would not leave him. About two hours later, I was told that he was killed.I don't remember the Corporal as being arrogant or stupid. I remember him as having a tremendous love for his brother. I remember that he had the courage to continually face enemy fire until his brother could leave. He paid with his life. "No Greater Love."
For The Little Children
Once upon a time there was a young prince who lived in a great stone castle on a big green mountain. He was old enough to start looking for a bride, but he knew he would not be able to do that. He knew that his parents, the King and Queen, would choose his bride for him. He thought, They will find me a bride in a foreign land and she won't even speak my language!
The prince was very sad.
One day, the Queen said to the King, "I'm concerned about the prince. He was always so happy. There was always a smile on his face. Now, I often see tears in his eyes."
The King said, "I felt the same way when I was his age. But what can we do? It has always been the rule that the King and Queen select the bride, not the prince. Surely we have more wisdom in such things than he does."
"Yes, My King, but I'm afraid the prince will run away rather than have us select his bride for him. What can we do?"
The king thought and thought. The next day he came to the Queen and said, "Let's have a grand ball and carnival. It will last a week. We will invite all the young princes and princesses with their parents as chaperones. We will see which princess he likes. If she is suitable, we will make the arrangements for the wedding. Now, the young prince must not think that he is selecting his own bride. We must stick to the traditions of our fathers."
The Queen said, "That is a marvelous idea. I'll see that the staff prepares for the celebration."
The great carnival started on Monday and the ball was to be held Saturday night. The prince spent time with each of the princesses, but after, Wednesday, he only was seen with one, Princess Nijinska. When she was young she was not pretty like the other princesses. She was known as the ugly duckling of princesses. But she always had a smile on her face, was very smart, and she liked the same things the prince liked.
When the King heard that the prince was spending his time with Princess Nijinska, he said to the Queen, "Surely, the prince does not want her for his bride. Do you remember what she looks like? She was such an ugly child. What if he is just being polite to her. He never has been rude, and he might just be helping her to have a good time while she is here."
The Queen smiled at the King. "You have misjudged our son. Remember when he was young. He loved toads more than frogs, and snakes better than bunnies. Looks are not the main thing with our son. He has to evaluate everything for it's true worth. Why, you taught him that looks can be deceiving."
The King sat on his throne and said, "Our son is also very clever. Maybe he is up to something."
The Queen laughed. "Like what? Well, maybe we will have to wait for the ball. Let us decide now. Whomever he dances with the last dance, shall be his bride."
The king thought that was a good idea.
At the Saturday night ball, the prince danced with each princess once, but not twice. He danced every other dance including the last dance with Princess Nijinska.
The king said, "She is like a beautiful swan on the lake. She moves with such elegance. In fact, she looks different tonight."
The Queen laughed. "You remember the princess as a child. She is woman now. She has changed."
The King laughed, "You could have told me that!"
The Queen smiled, "What kind of a surprise would that have been"?
"Right you are, My Dear Queen," said the King. "You have always filled my life with surprises. But that is only one reason that I love you. I even loved you before the last dance of the ball before my parents chose you for my bride. You see, I knew what you were up to, My Queen."
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