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Martin Eden

(12,529 posts)

4. Tears welled up when I first heard a portion of this in the Ken Burns documentary.

Mon May 29, 2023, 08:08 AM

May 2023

Tears again well up for this incredibly beautiful and loving testament to the sacrifices our citizen soldiers are called upon to make.

Let us resolve never to demand such sacrifices for anything less than a true and necessary cause the like of which Sullivan Ballou was willing to give his last full measure of devotion.

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17 replies

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Sullivan Ballou's letter to his wife [View all] dalton99a May 2023 OP

Here's a very moving setting of the letter by John Kander PJMcK May 2023 #1

May the need for letters like these cease to exist EYESORE 9001 May 2023 #2

"if...soft breeze fans your cheek, it shall be my breath..." markie May 2023 #3

Tears welled up when I first heard a portion of this in the Ken Burns documentary. Martin Eden May 2023 #4

Lincoln's letter to Mrs. Bixby is a must read today JAD May 2023 #5

Thank you for this thought provoking post. llmart May 2023 #6

We always got Memorial Day off ITAL May 2023 #10

Thank you. Ken Burns' Civil War highly recommended. 617Blue May 2023 #7

June 6, aka D-Day, is only 8 days away. wnylib May 2023 #8

I sit on a crowded Cafe poring over a cell phone. jaxexpat May 2023 #9

Thanks for the post and the replies... lots I hadn't heard of before... Karadeniz May 2023 #11

Swan Point Cemetery is truly beautiful, as cemeteries go. Beautiful view overlooking the river with JudyM May 2023 #12

If the Confederates had lost at Bull Run, the Civil War could have ended very quickly FakeNoose May 2023 #13

What a beautiful, poignant letter! electric_blue68 May 2023 #14

This message was self-deleted by its author elocs May 2023 #15

Yes, not making it, and having his corpse desecrated, too. It's possible many people wrote in more electric_blue68 May 2023 #16

To complete the story, here's a link to the reading of the letter Staph May 2023 #17