Just read today that the last of the Perry-Class Frigates is completing its final tour....during my service, I had the honour of refueling at least half of all of these ships made....and chatted back and forth with their signalmen using our archaic flags and morse-code with lights....sharp, shark-like ships.....much faster than the government wanted anyone to know......we sailed with Stark, and the Samuel B. Roberts........both of which lost men and sustained catastrophic damage from terrorism and sneak attacks.... (remember?)they both were repaired and went back out onto the seas to protect us all....I served a short stint on the Gallery on a trip from Rhode Island to Newfoundland... Great ships....forgive me being maudlin, but when old ships go off to be sold or sent to the breakers, it hurts old sailors.....we may have cursed them, hated the cramped quarters and the smell of oil and floor wax.....but they were HOME for a little part of our lives....and you always dream of them....its a little magical riding around the world in your own little town....even your own post office..... I think about the great, old Carriers, and the Battleships that are gone, now......Sailed alongside the Iowa.....saw first-hand a full broadside of 16 inch shells.....the concussion knocked the ash off a cigarette in my Signal Bridge.... from a mile away...... My ship, The USS Merrimack is gone, now, too.....and as much as I hated it, day-to-day, I was still proud to do what we did... Most people dont know, but losing a ship is wrenching, even an enemys ship.....sailors will cheer when the battle is won, but stand silent and remove their caps in respect and sorrow when a ship goes down......for the vessel, for the crew, for the waste....even if their own ship has been savaged in the battle.... This is the essence of a sailor....Honour, in victory and defeat....and you never forget the sounds, the movement, the frequency of the vibrations........the friends......the smell of haze-grey paint...... To all those who served on the Oliver Hazard Perry Class Frigates........thank you.....I wish you following seas....and may the wind be ever at your back..
Posted on: Thu, 22 Jan 2015 01:56:41 +0000
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