Memorial Day

Why are Coins on Military Headstones? By Pam Crooks

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Have you ever strolled through a cemetery and noticed a few (or a lot!) coins left on a monument?

Of course, it’s not unusual for loved ones and friends to leave sentimental items like a can of Dr. Pepper, a travel-size bottle of spirits, stones, a cross, and of course, flowers.

But money?

When we noticed several coins last year that had been glued on a headstone in our family’s cemetery, we found it odd.  Turns out, those coins have deep meaning, and if you see any, it’s very likely the headstone belonged to a member of the military.

Those coins are a sentimental gesture, not only from the person who left them, but to the family of the service member as well. It shows that others have been by to pay their respects, and they are showing great pride in someone who is no longer with them.

Per the Department of Military Affairs, the custom began during the Roman Empire when coins were placed in the mouths of soldiers for protection and payment into the world of the dead.  Here in the US, the custom especially grew in popularity during the Vietnam War, which of course was a controversial war.  Leaving the coins was a quiet way to honor and respect the fallen soldiers.

As you might guess, those coins are not left behind randomly.  Each one has special significance.

A penny means that a person has visited the headstone and is showing gratitude for the deceased’s service. There is no stipulation on who should leave the penny.  Anyone can.

A nickel means that the visitor had once attended boot camp with the deceased.

A dime signifies that the one who left it served in the military with the deceased.

A quarter – and this one is especially moving – means the visitor had been with the soldier when he or she passed away.

Wow.

With Memorial Day only a couple of weeks away, now you know why those coins are there, and if you’re like me, you’ll be especially moved by the gesture. They are a lovely way to show thanks for service and friendship – when the service member cannot hear us say the words.

Omaha National Cemetery

 

Have you ever seen coins on a headstone? 

Have you or a child left a memento on a loved one’s grave? 

What is the most unusual or moving thing you’ve seen on someone’s grave?

Men and Their Trucks

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I don’t know why but lately I’ve been thinking about trucks. Maybe it’s because I’ve heard so many songs that contain references to them or the fact that I live in Texas. Who knows. Part of my ruminating included the revelation that a truck is the twenty-first century cowboy’s horse. Nowadays we only see folks who work ranches riding a horse to check the far pasture fence or find a stray cow in Hallmark movies. In real life while some ranchers ride horses to cut cattle, most drive their truck, ATV, or a four-wheeler around their place, . (Please correct me if I’m wrong those of you that have working ranches or farms.)

My oldest son on the day he got his Big Blue Truck.

My oldest son bought a truck when he was in college. A couple years ago he hydroplaned in the rain during his long work commute. Thankfully, he wasn’t hurt, but his truck was totaled. As it seems is always the case, he couldn’t afford another truck with the insurance money. (His truck was paid for.) Instead, he bought a small sedan. It’s never sat right with him driving that car, despite having a truck again, he still misses that first one. His truck, merely having one, was tied to who he was—a born and bred Texan.

With that on my mind, I started looking at country songs with truck in the title. Here are some of my favorites.

  • Getting Married to My Pick Up Truck by Rodney Carrington—the comparison between his truck’s loyalty and a woman’s is hilarious. Click here to listen.
  • Truck Yeah by Time McGraw—is just plain fun. Click here to listen.
  • My Truck by Gretchen Wilson—is one of the few truck titled songs sung by a woman. Click here to listen.
  • My Ol’ Bronco by Luke Bryan—while while the word truck isn’t in the title, a Bronco is a specific truck so I’m counting it. The line “I ain’t never gonna let her go” sums it all up. Click here to listen.
  • Boy Gets a Truck by Keith Urban—these lyrics are a wonderful love story, “Boy gets a truck. Truck gets a girl. Girl gets a midnight feeling he’s the one, one night turns to love. Love turns into one knee down, down payment on a three-bedroom house filled with the sound of little feet. Then you blink and he’s asking for the keys to pick her up. Boy gets a truck.” Wow. I wish I’d written that. Click here to listen. 
  • That Ain’t My Truck by Rhett Akins—I feel the pain and anguish the singer feels from the moment he starts singing about driving past the house of the woman he loves and sees another man’s truck at her house. Click here to listen.
  • Look at My Truck by Chase Rice—Yup, a man’s truck says a lot about him. “If ya want to get to get to know me it ain’t that hard. It’s sitting on some Goodyears there in the yard. Got some dents, got some dings, been my best friend since I was 16, baptized in dirty water, handed down to me from my father. If ya wanna know, wanna know what I’m made of just look at my truck.” More words I wish I’d written. Click here to listen. 
  • Pick Up Man by Joe Diffie—I included this one, too because a pickup is a specific kind of truck. I love the lines about the singer getting his first pick up when he was three, driving 100,000 miles on his knees, and how he moved a Barbie doll bed for the girl next door. And the lines, “there’s something about a pick up man” and “if it weren’t for trucks, we wouldn’t have tailgates” are priceless. Click here to listen.
  • We Rode In Trucks by Luke Bryan—sums up how a man’s life and his truck are intertwined. Click here to listen.
  • Mud On the Tires by Brad Paisley—again, this one doesn’t have the word truck in the title, but the tires are ones on his new Chevrolet truck but adding that to the title isn’t as catchy. ? This is one of my favorites. Brad Paisley paints a picture of him and his girl spending time with each other and getting “a little mud on the tires.”
  • I Drive Your Truck by Lee Brice written by Connie Harrington, Jessi Alexander, and Jimmy Yeary—my other favorite song with truck in the title, but grab a handful of tissues before you listen to it. Here’s the poignant story behind the song. One Memorial Day weekend, songwriter Connie Harrington heard a father on radio show talking about his son, fallen soldier, Army Sgt. 1st Class Jared Monti, who died in Afghanistan while trying to save a fellow soldier. When asked how he would commemorate his son, the father said, he’d drive his truck. “What can I tell you? It’s him. It’s got his DNA all over it. I love driving it because it reminds me of him, though I don’t need the truck to remind me of him. I think about him every hour of every day.”
  • Click here to hear the song. Then click here to listen to “Mud on the Tires” to make you smile.

I always knew trucks meant a lot to their owners,  but after listening to these songs, it will change my writing because they’re more.

Giveaway:  To be entered in the random drawing for a signed copy of Aiming For His Heart, the Happy Clips, and the phone pocket, leave a comment about your favorite truck song or just a comment about trucks.

 

  • After a comment from MaryEllen Cox I have to add another song. Wait In the Truck by Hardy, featuring Lainey Wilson. Another wow that will hit you emotionally. Click here to listen.