July 4th: The More Things Change The More They Stay the Same

It's the Independence Day Blog Tour!!! Click on the "title" above, and you will be magically transported to our website: Starsandstamps.org!

So it's a big 4-day holiday weekend for many of us! I love this new stamp wheel so I did a "Happy Birthday, USA" card instead of a more personal one. The Copic cabana is open again and today it's out on the deck in this gorgeous "finally not too hot" weather to color Sandy's "eagle" digistamps for Any Hero cards. Can't wait to see all the creativity on the "tour" this weekend!

"The more things change, the more they stay the same" .. it's kind of trite, I know, but as I was making some OWH cards yesterday it occurred to me that before the age of cellphones, computers, etc. the only thing our troops overseas had to keep in touch with loved ones was the mail -- letters and cards from home that sometimes took weeks to reach them, and handwritten notes back scribbled on whatever they could find.

This picture of my Dad and his mother, "Mam," was taken in 1943 during a leave from his duty station in Panama on the Pacific side of the canal. During WWII he was a quartermaster ensuring that much needed supplies were at the ready for ships refueling and restocking in the Pacific theater. Fortunately the supply lines stayed open. These soldiers never saw combat but the conditions --unrelenting heat and humidity, bugs and mosquitos, nasty water, very basic accommodations -- were similar to what so many of our heros face today. And our heros today still have one big thing in common with all those men and women who preceded them: wherever they are, and especially those stationed in remote outposts, they still depend on the mail for that "piece of home" they can hold onto and cherish. And loved ones at home still wait anxiously by the mailbox for a card or letter for the same reason. What has changed is that we are fortunate today to have the privilege and the capabilities to make that link to home easier for soldiers and sailors stationed around the world by sending them thousands of cards -- labors of love from our homes that become links of love to their families and friends at home. Have a safe and happy 4th and remember the heros!