When Norman was seven years...
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When Norman was seven years old, his father left to serve in the Army in World War II. He was given the responsibility, as so many were, of having to be the man of the house in his father's absence. His father made a ceremony of it. In the ceremony, he gave his son a possession the family thought of as sacred, and imbued the gift with a meaning beyond the meaning it already had. The gift was the sword he had had since his graduation from West Point, and it was a constant reminder of the West Point motto, "Duty, Honor, Country." Father and son shared a commitment to this creed.
Now, at age seven, Norman was given the sword as a sign of his new duty, but also as a sign of his father's belief in his ability to carry out his obligation. He had the sword to remind him of both. Beyond that, the West Point sword was also a symbol of the dream, the hope, that the young Norman would also some day attend and graduate from that academy.
In spite of the obstacles, he did. The seven-year-old given the sword in 1942 was H. Norman Schwarzkopf, who in 1991 was the Commander-in-Chief of Operation Desert Storm. -- Mosley
Now, at age seven, Norman was given the sword as a sign of his new duty, but also as a sign of his father's belief in his ability to carry out his obligation. He had the sword to remind him of both. Beyond that, the West Point sword was also a symbol of the dream, the hope, that the young Norman would also some day attend and graduate from that academy.
In spite of the obstacles, he did. The seven-year-old given the sword in 1942 was H. Norman Schwarzkopf, who in 1991 was the Commander-in-Chief of Operation Desert Storm. -- Mosley
