A Veteran's Day Poem

by Rory Cripps | November 11, 2009 at 06:48 am

1377 views | 36 Recommendations | 23 comments

Never On The Horizon by Rory Cripps

Don't ask us how it started

Don't ask us if it's ever gonna end

And don't ask us to read it for you

Don't ask us when it's safe again

We'll tell you it's like a ruling

by fools that aren't fooling

It's like rolling seven when you're down to a dime

and holding aces and eights all the time . . . .

0 See all footage | View Slideshow

Share: email story | add to any | | facebook | stumbleupon

recommend Add a comment

albertacowpoke

at 07:28 on November 11th, 2009

Yep that poem says it all

Rory Cripps

at 08:31 on November 11th, 2009

ACP: Coming from someone with your experiences . . .that means a lot!

QueensHart

at 08:09 on November 11th, 2009

I sat next to a beautiful young man on a plane home on leave. My heart will never forget him.

We need to see them more...hear from them ...honor them and give them all we possibly can

for what they do.

Rory Cripps

at 08:35 on November 11th, 2009

QueensHart: I won't tell anyone what a thoughtful and caring person you really are . . . .

QueensHart

at 13:38 on November 11th, 2009

Thank You. : ) I send you a hug!

Rory Cripps

at 16:06 on November 11th, 2009

QueensHart: Thank you so much! Even unsophisticated and ignorant provincials, such as myself, will admit to needing a hug at times. Indeed, I need all the hugs that I can get . . . and so does everyone else whether they admit it or not.

Barry Artiste

at 08:24 on November 11th, 2009

Great poem Rory

Rory Cripps

at 08:32 on November 11th, 2009

Barry: Thanks! Did I at least get some of it right?

smkovalinsky

at 10:24 on November 11th, 2009

Beautiful, Rory.

Rory Cripps

at 10:33 on November 11th, 2009

SMK: Well thank you so much! I guess the poem could also be titled :How the hell did I wind up here?

Rory Cripps

at 12:26 on November 11th, 2009

Casino Craps, a dice game, is one of the most exciting casino games. It is common to hear yelling and shouting at a craps table.The player must handle the dice with one hand only when throwing and the dice must hit the walls on the opposite end of the table. In the event that one or both dice are thrown off the table, they must be inspected (usually by the stickman) before putting them back into play.

Pass Line Bet - You win if the first roll is a natural (7, 11) and lose if it is craps (2, 3, 12). If a point is rolled (4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10) it must be repeated before a 7 is thrown in order to win. If 7 is rolled before the point you lose.

ACES AND EIGHTS:

The dead man's hand is a two-pair poker hand, namely "aces and eights". The hand gets its name from the legend of it being the five-card-draw hand held by Wild Bill Hickok at the time of his murder (August 2, 1876). It is accepted that the hand included the aces and eights of both the black suits; although his biographer, Joseph Rosa, says no contemporary citation for his hand has been found, the "accepted version is that the cards were the ace of spades, the ace of clubs, two black eights (clubs and spades), and either the jack of diamonds or the queen of diamonds as the "kicker". The term, before the murder of Hickok, referred to a variety of hands. The earliest found reference to a "dead man's hand" is 1886, where it was described as "three jacks and a pair of tens."

Amy Judd

at 12:50 on November 11th, 2009

Lovely work

Rory Cripps

at 13:27 on November 11th, 2009

Thanks Amy!

QueensHart

at 13:40 on November 11th, 2009

The truth is................. a thoughtful and caring person posted this poem and the pix.

Rory Cripps

at 13:53 on November 11th, 2009

QueensHart: JEEZ! I'd give you my varsity jacket if I had one! lol!

jazzyzazzy

at 14:00 on November 11th, 2009

Awe...........thanks your poem is really lovely,well said Rory.

Rory Cripps

at 14:30 on November 11th, 2009

jazzyjazzy: Thank you! And an Awe ...... to you too!

a211423

at 19:04 on November 11th, 2009

Thank you for the heartfelt sentiments in poetry.

Rory Cripps

at 05:17 on November 12th, 2009

a211423: And thank you too!

8mileshi (not verified)

at 17:22 on November 18th, 2009

I wanted to recognize an honor a friend, a Nam Vet, and your poem was the second one I read...from there I knew I could pass along my deepest intent. I've now shared it four times an the one shocking response was from my 17 year old daughter...You successfully wrote through time.Bravo an Thanks!

Rory Cripps

at 19:25 on November 18th, 2009

8mileshi: Thank you for your thoughtful comment! I've got a confession to make here: The basis of my poem was constructed many years ago and it had a lot to do with Vietnam Vets . . . .It also had to do with the guilt of those, such as myself, that could have enlisted and would have been accepted in a heart beat but chose not to serve. My word is true when I say that I will go to my grave with "survivor guilt". I have nothing but complete and total admiration and respect for anyone that is willing to put their lives on the line for the American ideal . . . .

8mileshi (not verified)

at 03:52 on November 20th, 2009

Admirable Confession, Rory... Conscience is the root of all true courage; if a man would be brave let him obey his conscience. James Freeman Clarke

8mileshi (not verified)

at 04:09 on November 20th, 2009

btw, I shared your reply with the same 17 yr. old and I'll quote..."an look what he just contributed to the healing of one of our deepest scars" Sierra...guess they're not consistently 'brain dead'' )