Return to Legendary! As I sit here typing this late at night June 30th, my eyes burn from having been swimming at Stuart's all night. Rest assured I have retained my diving title (the can-opener is a crowd pleaser, but I think I bruised my tush). Tales from the Commonwealth On Father's Day, most of my family (grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, siblings) went to the D-Day Memorial in Bedford. The grounds and monuments are massive, and rightly so, for an event so important. Even packed with people, there is a solemnity that hangs over the site. It's the quiet of people in awe, fully taking in the magnitude of what occurred for the first time. For others, the silence is from respect or remembrance of loved ones lost that day. There are also the select few who remember being there that day. It is hard to be there long and not get goose bumps, especially when confronted with the statues depicting the landing. The pool of water shoots water into the air sporadically, simulating a hail of bullet fire. Some soldiers are storming the beach, others lie dead. Then the wall representing the cliffs grabs you. Hitler's Fortress Europe where Nazi machine gun nests fired straight down cliffs at the climbing soldiers is starkly illustrated. One of the reasons that no one is loud at the memorial is that most are choked up. I know I was. I couldn't have spoken if I wanted to. My father leaned over to me and with reverential awe huskily whispered, "These men saved the world!" I've been pondering that since then. Those men really did save the world. They were willing to volunteer their lives so that we could enjoy the freedoms we do today. Would we see that type of commitment today if another war of that scale broke out? Would 16 year olds lie to get into the service to fight for their country? I can only recall one other instance of being at a monument that physically struck me like the D-Day Memorial did, and that's the Vietnam Memorial. It has the same sobering effect by just seeing the size of it. In a time where we complain about the price of gasoline and whether we can afford another DVD player, we've lost sight of the larger things: ideals, causes, principles. My hat is off to those who served their country and especially those who gave their lives, so that I would be free to write this for all of you to read. Sports My hat is off to my swing doctor Ben. After being mired in a slump, Ben watched my swing and had me back 18 inches off the plate. Immediately I started making solid contact again. We haven't played much co-rec softball due to rainouts and forfeits, but the one game we managed to play in June was a thriller. Trailing by a run in the bottom of the last inning, our pitcher Greg doubled to start us off. The next hitter popped up on the infield for out number one. I came to the plate hitless in three at-bats and promptly smacked a triple bringing in Greg to tie the game. The batter behind me popped out on the infield leaving me at third with two outs. They intentionally walked the next guy who had a hit in every at-bat that game. Since it was co-rec, he took two bases, and the next batter (a girl) got a free walk since there were two outs. This loaded the bases for Ben with two outs and the game tied. Ben strode to the plate amidst my screams to just make contact and hustle, turned to me, and winked. Then he proceeded to stroke the sweetest single up the middle I've ever seen. I came home to score the winning run screaming like a man possessed, climbed the backstop behind home plate, and high-fived and hugged anyone within arm's reach (the umpire ran to avoid me). That carried over to our men's league where we won six straight games in June to give us a winning record (8-7) which is a rarity for our team. We still have one month left in the spring, and I'm hoping to bring more good news next month. Hairstyles Pee Wee Herman This month Reading - Ornithological Biography by John James Audobon (I promise to finish it this month) Listening to - Blues at Sunrise by Stevie Ray Vaughan Contact As always, I appreciate your thoughts and comments. You can email me at Shawn@somethingmonthly.com, or you can instant message using AOL's AIM program (look for The Folklegend). Don't forget to check out Something Monthly's message board!