Today is my first day at the Gettysburg Film Festival. The theme is “Victory in World War II”. I will be sending out daily posts from the festival, as it is just getting started.
As I got into Gettysburg last night, my mind went not to the words Lincoln said here over 160 years ago, but to words that Dwight Eisenhower never said. The message Ike crafted just prior to the launch of Operation Overlord on June 6, 1944, to be released in the event the attack on Normandy failed, is one of the great pieces of American writing that few people know about. Perhaps it is being here at Gettysburg and reflecting on how close this battle was that sent my mind to consider Ike’s words, but they are worth writing in full here.
“Our landings in the Cherbourg-Havre area have failed to gain a satisfactory foothold and I have withdrawn the troops. My decision to attack at this time and place was based upon the best information available. The troops, the air and the Navy did all that bravery and devotion to duty could do. If any blame or fault attaches to the attempt it is mine alone.”
Through the incredible heroics of so many Americans, Brits, Canadians, and others from across the Allied force, Ike never had to release this message. But I still marvel at those last two lines, praising the bravery and dedication of the troops while taking full and singular responsibility for the failure. A lesson in leadership that stands the test of time.
I’ll close with a lesson on love. My first event at the Gettysburg Film Festival concluded with actor Martin Sheen leading about 1,200 people in singing “America the Beautiful”. I missed the first couple of seconds, but I am sharing a recording here. I have been blessed to sing this ode to America in many different settings and it never fails to move me. It is such a gift to feel the shared sense of love evident in people’s voices.
More to come from Gettysburg.
"Never Forget What They Did Here"
The three minutes it took Abraham Lincoln to give the Gettysburg Address immortalized the setting. Gettysburg is where Americans consecrated in blood and affirmed in prose our dedication to the idea that “government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” Rare are the grounds that hold such mythic power for Americ…
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You can learn more about the festival at its homepage here.
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