Pearl Harbor 70th Anniversary

Today was a special day.  Today, I had the privilege of joining 100 Pearl Harbor survivors for the 70th anniversary commemoration ceremony at Pearl Harbor.  And what a ceremony it was!  Filled to the brim with military pomp and circumstance, it was a fitting tribute to the thousands who gave their lives in service to their country 70 years ago today.  It was also a joyous celebration of the lives of the survivors who are still telling their story 70 years later. 

One of the speakers said something that really hit home with me.  He said that the men and women at Pearl Harbor 70 years ago were the first of "The Greatest Generation", but the members of today's military are part of this country's next "Greatest Generation".  As a military spouse, I can only hope that the legacy we leave for our children and grandchildren is as profound and lasting as the legacy these men and women left for us.  I was honored to be in attendance today – it was truly a once in a lifetime experience and one I will not soon forget. 

I’ll leave you with a few highlights of the day:

Missing Man Flyover

Pass-in-Review: USS Chung-Hoon

 Mr. Mal Middlesworth, Keynote Speaker

Pearl Harbor survivors and families

 USS Arizona wreath, memorial and tug water tribute in background

 My new favorite Pearl Harbor survivor.  He would only take a picture with my Uncle Dale if he could, "have a picture with the pretty lady behind the camera."  My kind of guy!

A Day in Denver

Following the Thanksgiving weekend, I accompanied my Aunt Kathy, Uncle Dale, and their daughter Hannah to their house in Denver.  Hannah and I spent the last, beautiful, sunny day in November shopping on the 16th street mall.  Hannah soaked up the sunshine while I took pictures like a tourist, which I guess I kind of am since I don’t live in Denver. 

On the way home, we even found a good place to take some mountain pictures.  I miss seeing the mountains every day. 

Mental note – forever house must be near mountains. 

Thanksgiving

How did you spend Thanksgiving this year?  I’m going to venture a guess that it wasn’t with 158 of your closest relatives.  Well, guess what, I did spend Thanksgiving with 158 of my relatives.

Thanksgiving in my family has always been celebrated in this manner.  Let me start at the beginning…  Frank and Bertha Bertram are my great-grandparents.  They had 14 kids (yes, you read that number correctly).  Every Thanksgiving, the descendants of Frank and Bertha gather at the American Legion Hall in Colome, SD. 

Five generations of farm wives (and a few husbands) cook their finest Thanksgiving fare, and we all enjoy a good old-fashioned pot luck lunch. 

Color-coded shirts (see the Larsen family light blue below) are to be worn based on which of the 14 kids you belong to.  This is supposed to help everyone figure out who’s who, but I’m not kidding anyone.  I only know my immediate family and about 10 other people by name! 

That’s what the Bertram family calendar is for.  The calendar you ask?  Why yes.  Many years ago one of Frank and Bertha’s grandkids (Kathy) thought it would be a good idea to organize this madness into a family directory complete with birthdays, anniversaries, contact information, a family tree and so much more.  Kathy is amazing.  As of this year, there are almost 400 descendants.  I don’t know how she keeps them all straight, but she does. 

After we have all stuffed ourselves way beyond what is necessary, we take family pictures, talk about the old days on the farm, and generally try to keep our eyes open long enough to make it back to Grandma’s for a nap.  Our immediate family (Grandma, aunts, uncles, and cousins) usually spends the rest of the weekend, doing projects around Grandma’s house and shopping in the bustling metropolises of Gregory and Winner, SD.  This was the highlight of this year’s shopping trip. 

Nice huh?