The Porch	Waiting To Hear	Display of Freedom

WHY DO I PAINT FLAGS?

I was born at Carswell Air Force base in Fort Worth,Texas.  My Dad was in the Air Force for about 12 years, and the reserves after that.  All my uncles on his side were in the wars, and some on my Mothers side.  My Brother was in the Army for one year before his death.  My husband and I were married a year when the war in Viet Nam got so bad.  He got his draft notice and made the decision to join the Navy.  He was a Seabee stationed in Port Hueneme,Calif.  We felt so blessed that he ended up in the Admirals Seabee Band playing a tuba instead of going overseas and building air strips, etc.  We saw a lot of parades, sadness, and life changing experiences.   Right after he got to boot camp in San Diego he wrote and said there was a flag there - that had to be at least an "acre" big!  (He is a farmer)  and then he told me when he saluted the flag for the first time with his gun, it changed his life forever and that has always stuck in my mind and heart.  All my life, I have had some sort of example of patriotism shown me and it is something that will always be a part of me. 

I also have painted a lot of other flags for people.  I started drawing and painting them in 1990,  and as many as I have done I have never gotten tired of them.  I take pictures of the flag everywhere I go.  My camera is normally in my car all the time.  No matter when or where I see a flag, I think of how much I love America and how blessed we are to live here with all the freedoms that we are so very privileged to have.  I don't think we have a clue just how much God Has Blessed America.

I had the privilege of painting a flag for a 100 year time capsule. It is at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas.  I had to write on the back why I painted what I painted. (We had a choice, and mine was a flag) and this is what I put on the back ...hopefully for someone to read in 100 years.