Patriotic Gestures

I nearly forgot to mention (thank you Buzz) this beautiful Old Glory I saw draped over this beloved little cottage home near Humarock, MA last week.

It was during Memorial Weekend that our car squealed to a stop so I could jump out and snap a few shots. The owners must hire a crane and several extra hands to help canvas their roof top with the biggest flag I ever laid eyes on. Jen says that it's showcased every year around this time. Signs on the windows read "Thanks for your support. Pass it on to our veterans and troops" and "Tune to 88.7 for Patriotic Music."

Flag afficionados will argue that traditional customs limit the displaying of the flag from sunrise to sunset and only twenty-four hours a day if properly illuminated at darkness. Rules even govern the draping of flags including never draping over the hood, top, sides, or back of a vehicle, train or boat. But, here the flag works because it hangs vertically with the field of stars to the left of anyone looking at it from the street. See what having a veteran stepdad and two stepbrothers in the Army does to a tree-hugging environmental pacifist...