John C. McCornack
Yukon, Oklahoma

Shadows of the Past The country is the place for me It reflects my past so well Hay fields and herds of cattle Where I’ve always loved to dwell County style of homes I love Barns to hold new-born calves The musky smell of hay so sweet The best smell I could have Hooting owls flying in the night Nothing like that sound Always adds to the country scene Watching for critters on the ground But time does take its toll, my friend For we know nothing ever lasts But for me they will always be Comforting shadows of the past! Marilyn Lott © 2008 - 360

Lost Memories Sitting in the old porch swing, dreaming of my past Twilight's curtain has begun to fall The creatures of the night are softly singing And they carry me along as I recall The days of old that were so dear to me When we would sit and count the stars at night Grandpa would play that old violin And we would sing his favorite songs just right Chores were finished, it was time to gather As gentle breezes blew in from the south Mom and Daddy took the time to listen To us kids out on the porch of that old house Sometimes Grandpa told us of his boyhood And of when he was a soldier in the war He'd tell us many things about our country And tell us what the stars and stripes stood far Now as I go and visit that old homestead I think about the many times we had If I listen closely I still hear them The melodies I sang with Mom and Dad I can even see my grandpa standing And playing his violin for all to hear If I could only go back to my childhood I'd replay all these things I hold so dear ImAuthor4U © 1999

Saturday afternoon fishing

The World of Mom: My mom taught me A rolling stone gathers no moss

Barn Southeast of Decatur Illinois
Photo provided by Doug Bryant

Topless barn

The World of Mom: My mom taught me Live your life so that whenever you lose, you're ahead

Wheat field windmill

Early Day Oklahoma "Next morning early, we strung them out on the trail with hope that they would quiet down, but here we were again disappointed, for they would not line out as they should, but would take fright at a deer that would spring up or a flock of prairie chicken or quail would fly out of the grass which was waist high in many places and along the creek bottoms, reeds and grass as tall as a man on horseback." http://digital.library.okstate.edu/chronicles/v018/v018p371.html

Wheat field barn

How did the Red Cross start? As we learned from the links in our Red Cross category, The international Red Cross movement began by a chance occurrence. In 1859, a Swiss businessman, Henry Dunant, traveled to northern Italy to obtain a business document. In Italy, he happened to witness a one-day battle between Austrian and French armies outside the town of Solferino. He was horrified to see that 9,000 wounded soldiers were left without any medical attention, and he organized local villagers to help care for the wounded. After returning home to Geneva, Dunant could not forget what he had seen, and, in 1862, he published his memoir of the event titled A Memory of Solferino. The book was a huge success and influenced a Geneva charity society to join with Dunant to form International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which met for the first time in February 1863. Later that year, the committee held an international conference to bring together governmental and private aid organizations. (This combination of public and private support became an essential element of the Red Cross.) The 1863 conference led to ten resolutions that outlined the goals and organization of the ICRC. The ICRC wanted every country to form its own Red Cross committee to address their needs and to work in concert through the ICRC. The first Red Cross societies were created in Belgium, Prussia, Denmark, France, Italy, Spain, and other European countries in 1863. The American Red Cross was founded by famous Civil War nurse Clara Barton in 1881. Almost every nation in the world has formed its own Red Cross or Red Crescent (as it is called in Muslim countries) organization. Each national group supports the fundamental principles of the movement, which are humanity, impartiality, neutrality, independence, voluntary service, unity, and universality. Many of these principles are at the heart of the Geneva Convention of 1864 (also known as the Treaty of Geneva), created by the ICRC. This document mandated that hospitals and medical personnel be treated as neutral parties during war and that wounded must be cared for, regardless of nationality. The Geneva Convention was the start of international humanitarian law and has had enormous influence around the world. http://www.top-greetings.com