April 4th, 2024
My daughter-in-law in Texas sent me this photo a couple days ago. It’s a picture of her daughter (my granddaughter), Madeline, kneeling on top of a wobbly table on their porch gazing at a flag bearing the emblem of the 1st Cavalry Division. My oldest son, Hans, is Madeline’s father, and he served in the 1st Cav. He was deployed to Iraq with the Cav back in 2011. Hans and Gabby just bought this home with the porch, so I am pretty sure that the flag is also a new purchase. Hans never had a place to fly a flag before. Now, it proudly waves in the Texas breeze.
I like the photo. It is mysterious in a way. I can only see the back of Madeline, so I don’t know what her face looks like. I can’t see her expression. I can’t guess what she may be thinking. All I know is that this three-year-old is intently watching Daddy’s flag flap in the sunshine.
Hans identifies strongly as a vet, especially as a combat vet. The flag waves in his yard because it means something to him. I don’t know if Hans can adequately explain what it means, but I do know that it is important to him. It represents part of his history, an extremely vital part of it. Part of my son, and part of Maddy’s father, is in that flag.
Hans has a military ancestry. His paternal grandfather was a Navy man on an aircraft carrier in the Carribean back in the 1950’s. Hans’ maternal grandfather was a radioman in the Luftwaffe during WWII. I was a helicopter pilot for the Army in West Germany during the Cold War in the 1980’s. Hans followed suit and joined the Army. However, Hans was trained as a tanker, and then Hans went to war.
When Hans was growing up, he saw stuff that I had kept from my time in the service. When I was young, I saw stuff that my father had from his time in the Navy. I saw things that my father-in-law had in his possession from his years in the German military. These things add up, and the next generation, for good or will, takes them to heart at a very young age.
I don’t know what Madeline sees when she looks at the 1st Cav flag. Maybe she just thinks it’s pretty. That’s okay. I know for sure that she knows it’s her daddy’s flag and that is all that matters.
Frank is Emptiness 
Before I made it to the end of your page, I was thinking, “That’s okay. I know for sure that she knows it’s her daddy’s flag and that is all that matters.” Great minds, eh?? I went down range many times as a deployed flight surgeon and saw lots of “stuff,” both very good and very bad. My girls were 16 and 21 when I retired, so they were around for it. The look that you imagine on your grand daughter is one that I have had the Blessing to see on the faces of my kids and the kids of many of our fellow vets; tney are proud of their daddy’s and mommy’s and many don’t even know how to express that. This is one way. Good stuff, Frank. Thanks, as always, for sharing. Smitty
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