Bobbi McKinnon, Realtor, Northern Nevada

With my son in law in Iraq this Holiday Season I felt the need to pass along this poem from

LCDR Jeff Giles, SC, USN 30th Naval Construction Regiment

Different Christmas Poem

The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light,

I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight.

My wife was asleep, her head on my chest,

My daughter beside me, angelic in rest.

Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white,

Transforming the yard to a winter delight.

The sparkling lights in the tree I believe,

Completed the magic that was Christmas Eve.

My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep,

Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep.

In perfect contentment, or so it would seem,

So I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream.

The sound wasn't loud, and it wasn't too near,

But I opened my eyes when it tickled my ear.

Perhaps just a cough, I didn't quite know,

Then the sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow.

My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear,

And I crept to the door just to see who was near.

Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night,

A lone figure stood, his face weary and tight.

A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old,

Perhaps a Marine, huddled here in the cold.

Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled,

Standing watch over me, and my wife and my child.

"What are you doing?" I asked without fear,

"Come in this moment, it's freezing out here!

Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve,

You should be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!"

For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift,

Away from the cold and the snow blown in drifts..

To the window that danced with a warm fire's light

Then he sighed and he said "Its really all right,

I'm out here by choice. I'm here every night."

"It's my duty to stand at the front of the line,

That separates you from the darkest of times.

No one had to ask or beg or implore me,

I'm proud to stand here like my fathers before me.

My Gramps died at ' Pearl on a day in December,"

Then he sighed, "That's a Christmas 'Gram always remembers."

My dad stood his watch in the jungles of ' Nam ',

And now it is my turn and so, here I am.

I've not seen my own son in more than a while,

But my wife sends me pictures, he's sure got her smile.

Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag,

The red, white, and blue... an American flag.

I can live through the cold and the being alone,

Away from my family, my house and my home.

I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet,

I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat.

I can carry the weight of killing another,

Or lay down my life with my sister and brother..

Who stand at the front against any and all,

To ensure for all time that this flag will not fall."

"So go back inside," he said, "harbor no fright,

Your family is waiting and I'll be all right."

"But isn't there something I can do, at the least,

"Give you money," I asked, "or prepare you a feast?

It seems all too little for all that you've done,

For being away from your wife and your son."

Then his eye welled a tear that held no regret,

"Just tell us you love us, and never forget.

To fight for our rights back at home while we're gone,

To stand your own watch, no matter how long.

For when we come home, either standing or dead,

To know you remember we fought and we bled

Is payment enough, and with that we will trust,

That we mattered to you as you mattered to us."

PLEASE, would you do me the kind favor of sending this to as many

people as you can? Christmas will be coming soon and some credit is due to our

U.S. service men and women for our being able to celebrate these

festivities. Let's try in this small way to pay a tiny bit of what we owe. Make people

stop and think of our heroes, living and dead, who sacrificed themselves for us.

LCDR Jeff Giles, SC, USN

30th Naval Construction

Regiment

OIC, Logistics Cell One

Al Taqqadum, Iraq

We had almost 18 inches of snow at my house in Northwest Renoyesturday.

It's wonderful to see the white stuff finally falling, but boy we probably could have spaced it out a bit more. 30 to 40 inches were recorded at some of the area ski resorts, so they are happily opening their doors. Of course the snowy couple of days as usual was followed by brilliant sunshine, but along with those clear skys came VERY cold temps. It was -3 degrees this morning and we hope to hit a high of 26 today. For those in the upper Midwest, I know that's not that cold, but its a record for Reno!

Good luck to those in the Midwest as this storm is coming your way!

As Veteran's Day approaches tomorrow, my family is especially touched by the tributes to those that have and are protecting our country. Thank you to everyone that sent there concerns and inquiries during last week's horrific events!

My son-in-law Nate is stationed in Texas. I was out with clients showing houses totally unaware of the developing tragedy at Fort Hood when I received the first call from my step mom. She asked in a panic, "Where's Nate? Is he OK?" Since he was on leave visiting us here in Northern Nevada, I laughed and said, "he was sitting on my coach watching TV when I left this morning, why?" She proceeded to give me sketchy details about a mass shooting in Texas, at the time she was not sure where, only that it had been on an Army base.

Nate and my daughter Kelly had been at a movie with their phones off so they were shocked when returning home they turned on their cells to find over 20 messages each. As we all tuned in to hear what was happening, we soon discovered with relief that the shootings did not occur at Nate's home base of Fort Bliss.

That relief was quickly replaced by a terrible sadness and empathy for those families affected. The entire Army family has been deeply wounded, and Nate's squad felt a disconcerting uneasiness, since they had just been through the processing center last week in preparation for their coming deployment.

Yesterday, Nate left Reno to head back to Texas. His unit leaves for somewhere in Iraq next week. I helplessly watched my daughter say goodbye to her husband whom she is unlikely to see for a year or so. I can only pray for his and every other military personnel's safety, abroad and here at home!

The debt we owe to all that serve should not be remembered only one or two days a year, but tomorrow, try and take a moment and really think about the sacrifices made by the brave men and women of all branches of the military. And give thanks!

As a member of the Reno Sparks Chamber of Commerce Diplomats, I attended two ribbon cuttings over the past couple of weeks for two new hotel offerings here in Northern Nevada . The Hyatt Place and Hawthorn Suites both offer a great new options for travelers to the Reno Area.

Typhoon hits Northern Nevada.....Well, kind of. The Northern Nevada area had some very unusual weather the past few days. A warm, wet storm hit and dropped over an inch of rain. That's almost record setting for this area, this time of year. I know....all of you in Seattle are wondering what the big deal is, but the high desert has been particularly dry so the rain and snow (at the higher elevations) were welcomed! Of course the 60 mph winds we could have done without. The gusts over the ridges in the Sierras were expected to reach 130 miles per hour. Yes those are Typhoon or Hurricane force winds in most areas of the world, here in Northern Nevada, we call them gusts!!

With the unusual weather, my dog and my daughter's dog and cat took drastic measures to stay cozy.

I love living and working in Northern Nevada.