“On Hallowed Ground”
Written and read by Robert M. Poole
He was somebody’s baby once, and treasured.
His mother carried him nine months, anticipating the day she’d meet him; his father secretly hoped for a boy. His arrival was heralded, his childhood happy, his adolescence fleeting. He grew up to be a fine man, loved by family and friends, known for his valor and conviction.
And now his name is etched in stone, dead some eight decades, remembered only by an aging few. In the audiobook “On Hallowed Ground: The Story of Arlington National Cemetery” (c.2010, Brilliance Audio, $29.99 / $30.99 Canada, 11 CDs / 12 h 49m) written and read by Robert M. Poole, you’ll learn about that soldier and the place of honor where he and others lie.
Robert E. Lee’s home “had the appearance of a superior English country residence,” said one British visitor to the mansion. But when Lee’s wife inherited it from her deceased father, the gift was burdensome.
The plantation had become bedraggled in the last years of George Washington Parke Custis’ life, but Lee was determined to restore it. With the labor of 63 slaves who lived on the grounds, he brought the mansion, gardens, and fields back to their former glory. But when Lee accepted command of Virginia’s military, says Poole, “Arlington was lost.”
Mary Anna Custis Lee didn’t want to give up her family home, but when Civil War dead were buried in her gardens, she had little choice: the war literally surrounded her. Lee’s husband, who listed each of their slaves by name, freed them all mid-War, but made it clear that those who stayed would be expected to work for future pay. A surprising number did, and moved to the edge of the plantation.
In June of 1864, a recommendation was made that the land surrounding Arlington Mansion be officially “appropriated as a national military cemetery.”
Throughout its years, Arlington has several times come close to being full. Its tombstones have ranged from wood to metal to granite and cannons. Up until relatively recently, the location of interment depended on the color of a soldier’s skin. Famous people lie in Arlington, as do the influential and everyman, several unknowns and knowns, and a few small slave children.
You know that row-upon-row image of marching white tombstones you get when someone mentions Arlington National Cemetery? You’ll get that in your mind as you listen to “On Hallowed Ground,” and so much more …
Author Robert M. Poole reads his own work in this audiobook. His voice is warmly commanding, and that puts listeners straight into the action as Poole sets his scenes and describes historical action. It helps that exclusive interviews with cemetery workers, former soldiers, people who were a part of Arlington history, and descendants of Arlington slaves are included. Although it occasionally drags with detail, I was, overall, amazed and thrilled with this listening experience.
At nearly 13 hours (but just $2 more than the paper book), “On Hallowed Ground” is an audiobook that will last you a good while. Civil War buffs will eat it up, as will veterans and anyone who wants insight to this national treasure.
When it comes to arguing, nobody’s better than you.
You argue about bedtime, mealtime and bath time. You argue with your brother or sister. Some people might call you sassy. Others might say you’re dissing them.
But at school, they call it “debate,” and that’s where you learned that respectful arguing is as old as America. It’s also your best chance to change what’s wrong.
You stayed home last Saturday night.
The Saturday before, you went club-hopping with your girls. And the Saturday before that, you saw a movie with your mama.
It’s not that you don’t want to date. No, the truth is that statistics don’t lie: there’s a shortage of Black men, and since you’re “holding out” for one, you stay home a lot.
What else can you do?
Who is your favorite superhero?
Does he wear a cape and fly through the air? Or does he have sharp knives instead of claws so he can really mess up the bad guys? Does your superhero run fast, spin webs, jump high, control fire or wind, or is he able to swim through deep oceans with special gills on his neck?
The contribution of Black pilots from the Caribbean during the Second World War bears strong similarity to that of the now legendary Tuskegee Airmen, according to World War II Pasadena historian and aviation buff, Herman James.
It’s amazing how, sometimes, old words have new meaning.
Take, for example, a classic play or novel. Take, for example, a favorite poem that a great-grandfather tucked away in a family Bible, a story set in another era, or a letter written by a long-gone ancestor.
The words inside it might seem quaint and stiff. The format may not be familiar to you at all. You might not have known the writer but though the times are different, verses and thoughts put to paper 100 years—or even three generations—ago still shout their meaning.
