old hat

not so long ago my mother says to me, "son why don't you throw away that ratty old hat and wear one that looks better. I without reflection told her that, because my father had bought the hat for me. i would never throw it away. it isnt anything real fancy it was a flea market pickup at $4 or $5 dollars. since this incident i have had time to reflect upon my old hat. i am reminded of an old country song about a biker trying to take the hat off this ol dudes head, and he goes on to tell why the hat will never be taken from him. so for those of you who tolerate my sometimes lengthy ramblings, i shall tell of my old hat. it is black. has a bald eagle on it, american flag and says U.S.A across the bill. therefore the hat stands for the country in which i live, and love. on my hat is several pins. one is a platoon seargents pin, this pin belonged to my father who served our country for 23 years. another pin is a seargent major pin. a friend of mine gave this to me, it was his rank in Viet Nam. I include on my hat the eagle, anchor and globe of the U.S.M.C, the beloved corps that my father spent 3 of his 23 years of service in. There is a yellow ribbon pin in support of our troops, and a POW MIA pin for those who have not came home. I have a US army pin also to show support for the troops who make this country so great. I also have a u.s air force pin, that my father got me when i was young, i had dreams of being a fighter pilot, if the marines wouldnt take me then the airforce was my next option. i wear this pin to remind me that dreams and plans dont always go through. lung cancer at age 11 killed part of my right lung, and my dreams of service. to top off the hat, which in whole stands for freedom, i wear a deaths head pin. this pin is representitive of death to those who would oppose us, and our way of life. it is for these reason, that the hat shall never be thrown away, it gets scrubbed about once a month and the pins put back in their place.