Gary Stockdale

[Gary Stockdale @vflstock74]

@UTVolShop @VolBandit3 @VolNetwork Pantone 151C

[NOBUNAGA🇯🇵🏯_夏樹蒼依 @japan_nobunaga]

The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is guarded twenty-four hours a day, three hundred and sixty-five days a year.

It has been guarded, without interruption, since 1937.

In September of 2003, Hurricane Isabel reached Washington. The National Park Service, out of concern, gave the sentinels of the Old Guard permission to stand down for the storm.

They did not stand down.

The sergeant of the guard on duty that night refused the permission, calmly, and without further comment. He would later say, in an interview, only that permission was not the same as an order, and that in the absence of an order, the walk continues.

The walk continues.

Twenty-one steps. Turn. Face the tomb. Twenty-one seconds. Turn. Face the other way. Twenty-one seconds. Twenty-one steps.

The rain came sideways.

A tree fell in the cemetery a hundred yards to the east.

The wind lifted a portion of the roof from a nearby maintenance shed.

The sentinel did not break stride.

He walked. He turned. He walked.

At 3 a.m. the wind reached seventy miles per hour, and a sentinel weighing 175 pounds in soaked wool, carrying a rifle, and wearing sunglasses in the dark because the manual requires them, walked twenty-one steps, turned, and walked twenty-one steps back.

Nobody was watching him.

Nobody could have watched him. The cemetery had been closed. The public had been evacuated. The only witness was the storm.

He walked for six hours.

He was relieved at 6:12 a.m.

The tomb had not been left, at any point during the storm, uncovered.

There is no medal for this.

There is no ribbon. There is no citation. There is no commendation in his file.

The Old Guard does not require one.

The walk is the point.

The walk was the walk before there was a country to record it, and the walk will be the walk after everyone who remembers this night is gone.

Somewhere in America, at this moment, in whatever weather, a sentinel is walking twenty-one steps beside a marble slab, facing an unknown man whose name he does not know, for an oath he took to a country that will never see him take it.

That is what the promise looks like when nobody is watching.

[The Husky @Mr_Husky1]

On a freezing December morning in 1957, President Dwight D. Eisenhower was reviewing budget proposals when his secretary nervously informed him that a 73-year-old woman named Mrs. Eleanor Mitchell from Abilene, Kansas—his childhood Sunday school teacher—was in the White House lobby asking to see him without an appointment, and instead of having staff politely redirect her, Eisenhower literally ran down the hallway, swept this elderly woman into a huge bear hug, and cleared his entire afternoon to have tea with her in the residence.

What makes this moment so breathtakingly beautiful is that Mrs. Mitchell had taught a scrappy young Dwight Eisenhower Bible verses every Sunday from 1907 to 1911 in a tiny church basement, making him memorize Proverbs and Psalms when he'd rather be playing baseball, and she'd written him letters throughout his military career—through both world conflicts, through his rise to Supreme Commander, through his election—always addressing him simply as 'Dwight' and reminding him that 'character matters more than rank.' Eisenhower told his staff that Mrs. Mitchell once made him apologize to the entire Sunday school class for being prideful after he'd bragged about winning a spelling bee, teaching him a humility lesson that shaped his entire leadership philosophy, and he'd never forgotten how she'd pulled him aside afterward and said, 'Dwight, you're going to do important things someday, but never let success make you forget where you came from or who helped you along the way.'

During their White House tea, Eisenhower introduced Mrs. Mitchell to every cabinet member who passed by, saying with genuine reverence, 'This woman taught me everything that matters—respect this lady,' and she gently scolded him for not attending church regularly enough, which made the most powerful man in the world laugh and promise to do better.

When Mrs. Mitchell left that evening, Eisenhower walked her personally to her taxi, kissed her cheek, and pressed an envelope into her hand containing a check for her church and a note:
‘For the place that built my foundation—thank you for seeing potential in a troublemaker farm boy. Your student always, Dwight.'

What absolutely destroys you is understanding that Eisenhower commanded armies and led nations, but he never forgot the Sunday school teacher who taught him that true strength was moral courage, proving that the greatest leaders never outgrow gratitude and that honoring the people who shaped you when nobody knew your name is the most presidential thing you can do.

[Hidden History @HiddenHistoryYT]

In 1945 the USS Indianapolis secretly delivered the parts for the atomic bomb that would hit Hiroshima.

Days later, mission done, a Japanese submarine put two torpedoes into her. She sank in 12 minutes.

Nearly 900 men made it off the ship alive and into the open ocean. Then it got worse.

No one knew they were missing. Three separate Navy stations picked up the distress signals and every one of them ignored it. One officer thought it was a Japanese trap. Another had ordered not to be disturbed.

So the men floated. For almost five days. No food, no fresh water, burning by day and freezing at night. Some drank seawater and went insane. And the whole time, the sharks were circling and feeding. It is considered the worst shark attack in human history.

When rescue finally came by accident, only 316 of the nearly 1,200 crew were still alive.

The Navy needed someone to blame for the disaster. They chose Captain Charles McVay, one of the men who survived it. He became the only U.S. captain in the entire war to be court-martialed for losing his ship to the enemy.

At his trial the Navy did something almost unheard of. They brought in the Japanese commander who sank the ship to testify against him. Instead, the enemy captain told the court that zigzagging would have made no difference and that McVay did nothing wrong.

They convicted him anyway.

For years afterward McVay got hate mail from the families of the dead. Some sent letters every Christmas telling him he murdered their sons. In 1968 he walked onto his front lawn and shot himself, holding a toy sailor he had kept since he was a boy.

Case closed. For fifty years.

Then in 1996 an 11-year-old named Hunter Scott watched Jaws with his dad and got hooked on the 30 second speech about the Indianapolis. He made it his sixth grade history project.

He tracked down and interviewed nearly 150 survivors. He dug through more than 800 documents. And buried in there he found what the Navy had left out, including that they knew enemy subs were operating right on the ship's route and never warned McVay.

A kid's school project turned into a national story. It reached Congress. In 2000 lawmakers passed a resolution clearing McVay's name and President Clinton signed it. The Navy officially cleared his record in 2001.

The captain the Navy spent decades blaming was finally exonerated by a sixth grader.

Hunter Scott grew up and became a naval flight officer.

[War Correspondent @warDaniel47]

🚨 JUST IN: Tim Burchett with the HILARIOUS RESPONSE after Bernie Sanders opposed the SAVE America Act by saying, "I don't know how to get my birth certificate!"

"If you don't know the Google search, Bernie, that's G double O G L E. If you'll click it and then type in, after you get it up at the top, 'how to get a birth certificate in New York.'" 🤣

"And guess what? It popped right up!"

"The vital records department. And then you just scroll down and it says birth certificate, oddly enough. Crazy talk."

"And then I clicked on that and it went through what you need to do. And then you can even use your credit card, which I'm sure you as a capitalist will have a credit card."

"Or if you don't, I'm sure one of your many staffers will have that. And all you got to do is fill it out. And dadgum, guess what? They'll mail it to you, Bernie. It's crazy talk."

"Or they can, I think they can even send one to you online. I mean, it's just incredible. I was perplexed on this whole issue that we were causing great consternation on you."

"So I would encourage you to do that, Bernie. If you don't know how to do that, ask one of your many staffers and I'm sure they will assist you."

"It's a very simple process, Senator. And there's no reason that you don't get in line with about 85% of your constituents that think you, in fact, should be an American citizen to vote and show proof of that with a birth certificate!"

[Mike Hoffmann @MikeHoffmann]

Luke Falk shared a Mike Leach story that stopped me cold:

Two kids. One rich. One poor.

Every training camp, Coach Leach told his team about these 2 kids.

The rich kid has two choices.

Get soft. Get entitled. Expect everything handed to him because he was handed more.

Or take the resources, the coaching, the opportunities, and compound them into something greater.

The poor kid has two choices too.

Say nobody gave him anything. Blame the world. Make his circumstances the reason he never became what he could have been.

Or outwork everyone in the room.

Luke said the locker room had both. Kids from wealth. Kids from nothing. Kids with every advantage. Kids who scraped for every inch.

Same choice for all of them.

Ownership or victimhood.
Fuel or excuse.

The rich kid can waste the head start or build on it.

The poor kid can drown in the deficit or weaponize it.

Greatness doesn't come from where you start.

It comes from which kid you choose to feed.

Credit to @coachlukefalk for continuing to share golden nuggets about Coach’s legacy

[Mark Batterson @MarkBatterson]

If you were betting in 1st century on WHAT would last the longest—Roman Empire or Christianity—WHO would have the greatest influence—Caesar Augustus or Jesus—you bet the farm on Rome. 2000 years later, CAESAR IS A SALAD and two billion people celebrate Easter #ChristIsRisen @NCC

[Rep. Tim Burchett Press Office @RepTimBurchett]

Today, I gave a speech honoring the life and legacy of Wes Rucker. Wes was a valued member of the East Tennessee community, a dedicated Vol fan, and most importantly, a loving father and husband.

Please join me in praying for his family and the @wbir community.

[Tennessee Baseball @Vol_Baseball]

Honored to have Hank Rucker throw out tonight’s ceremonial first pitch!

#TeamRucker

[Clay Travis @ClayTravis]

Alysa Liu & Eileen Gu were both offered millions to represent China at the Olympics, even though both were born & raised in America. Liu’s family said no to communist money because they believe in democracy, Gu took the money & repped China. Thanks, Alysa:

[IcyVert @IcyVert]

When hockey was invented this is what they envisioned

[The Husky @Mr_Husky1]

For nine months, my wife Brooklyn carried our baby boy knowing he was dying. Three months in, they told us he had severe hydrocephalus. Too much fluid crushing his brain. "Off the charts bad," the specialists at Cincinnati Children's said. So extreme they stopped measuring because it didn't matter anymore.
The MRIs were sickening to look at. They said over 90% chance he'd either die right after birth or survive with such severe brain damage that any quality of life was impossible. We had meetings about breathing tubes. About when to remove life support. About letting our son "pass peacefully."
Brooklyn moved to Cincinnati, lived in a hotel near the hospital in case she went into labor. I drove back and forth, working, trying to hold our family together while planning our baby's funeral. On July 8th, fifteen minutes before her C-section, we had another meeting about the breathing tube. About when we'd need to remove it and let him go to Heaven.
Then Charlie came out crying. The sweetest sound I've ever heard.
He stayed in intensive care until yesterday. Now he's home, doing everything babies do. Normal. Beautiful. The doctors have no medical explanation. His brain somehow cleared the blockage on its own, something they've never seen in a case this severe. Nurses with decades of experience kept saying "miracle" and "divine intervention."
Thousands of people were praying for us. Friends, family, strangers, people we'd never met. I'm practical, I believe in science, but I know God was involved in this. I give Him all the credit.
During those endless nights in Cincinnati, I started woodworking in the hotel parking lot just to keep my hands busy, to stop my mind from breaking. Made small toys hoping one day Charlie might hold them. Listed a few things on the Tedooo app where I'd been selling my work, and strangers started buying pieces they didn't need, sending messages saying they were praying for our son. That community held me when I couldn't stand.
Charlie's here. He's alive. Prayer is real, and miracles still happen.

By Amanda Cain

[Reverend Jordan Wells @WellsJorda89710]

Christian apologist **@WesleyLHuff** drops the raw truth on the Shawn Ryan Show when asked the ultimate question: **What happens when we die?**

In a powerful moment, Wes shares the gospel straight-up—sin's deadly wage, Christ's sacrificial death and resurrection, and the free gift of eternal life through faith in Jesus.

No fluff, no dodging—just bold, biblical clarity that hits hard.

"The wages of sin is death... but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." (Romans 6:23)

This clip is going viral for a reason: Real talk about life, death, and what comes next from one of the sharpest defenders of the faith today.

Watch the full exchange—it's convicting, hopeful, and unapologetically gospel-centered.

Who else needs to hear this right now? ✝️

[Josh Ward @Josh_Ward]

Incredible play by Tennessee’s Bishop Boswell last night to help seal the win at Mississippi State.

[Archaeo - Histories @archeohistories]

Rick Moranis married costume designer Ann Belsky in 1986 and together they had two children. Then tragedy struck and Moranis decided to take a break from acting in 1997 to raise his children. When asked about his decision he said, “I have absolutely no regrets whatsoever. My life is wonderful.”

Rick Moranis was at the height of his career in the 1980s and early 1990s, starring in classics like Ghostbusters, Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, and Spaceballs. His comedic timing and gentle personality made him a beloved figure in Hollywood. Yet when his wife, Ann Belsky, passed away from cancer in 1991, Moranis quietly shifted his priorities. He continued working for a few years, but by 1997 he stepped away from film altogether to focus on being a full-time single father.

In later interviews, Moranis explained that raising his children took precedence over everything else. While many saw his absence from Hollywood as a loss for cinema, he viewed it as a blessing. He built a private, fulfilling life away from the spotlight, never once expressing regret. In recent years, he has returned to small projects, but his legacy rests not only on his comedic roles, but on the choice to put family first.

Despite his long hiatus, Moranis received Grammy nominations for his comedy music albums, proving his creativity continued even while he focused on fatherhood.

© History Pictures

#archaeohistories

[Big Back Mack @BigOrangeMack]

40 years ago tonight, the game that started it all for me. #SugarVols

[David @DavidFischer]

Tonight I declare before everyone that Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior!

Repost if you’re with me!

[Talk Church @churchtalkative]

2 things the Bible says do repeatedly!

[Gryphon @Gryph911]

To all my fellow Gen X out there