[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 29 (Wednesday, March 8, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E308-E309]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     IN HONOR OF HAROLD KEITH ADAMS

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. MARION BERRY

                              of arkansas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Wednesday, March 8, 2006

  Mr. BERRY. Mr. Speaker, I rise here today to share an incredible 
story written by Timothy Scott Adams in memory of his father Harold 
Keith Adams. This story of love and service captures the powerful 
meaning behind our country's greatest symbol--the American flag.

                            My Father's Flag

       My life changed dramatically on the morning of February 11, 
     2005, when my roommate woke me around 5:30 a.m. He said the 
     ship had called, and I should go into work. They had some 
     important news to tell me, so I unwillingly rolled out of bed 
     and stumbled to the sink. I still felt the side effects from 
     the night before. I had gone out with some friends of mine 
     the night before, and it had been a late one. As I began to 
     get ready I knew something had to be wrong. Why else would 
     the ship call me in so early? The only thought I had racing 
     through my mind was that something bad had happened at home: 
     somebody was hurt.
       I remember walking up to the ship with my stomach in knots 
     fighting the anxiety overdose my body was going through. I 
     had no idea what to expect. The Quarterdeck Watch told me to 
     go see the Command Master Chief; he had something he needed 
     to talk to me about. I remember thinking to myself this can't 
     be a good sign having to come into work at 5:30 in the 
     morning to see the CMC. I was unconsciously traveling on a 
     long road to disappointment. He sat me down and told me that 
     the ship received a message that my father had passed away, 
     and he didn't have any details. I crumbled: ``No, this can't 
     be true. Things were supposed to be better! He had come so 
     far.'' The world around me had suddenly frozen. I felt like I 
     had fallen off the face of the Earth. I was all alone. My 
     heart was locked in a dark chamber of pain and grief, yet I 
     had no key: no answer.
       The next thing I knew I was on an 8-hour plane ride home, 
     with my emotions running fiercely out of control. My thoughts 
     were full of anger and disgust. I kept asking myself ``Why? 
     Why now? Hasn't there been enough pain?'' I felt alone not 
     knowing what to expect when I saw my family. All I wanted to 
     do was try and sleep to hide my pathetic appearance from the 
     relentless curiosity of the public.
       The plane touched down in Dallas with a three-hour layover. 
     The first thought that crossed my mind was to drown my 
     emotions and fears with my good buddy, Jim Beam. I took a 
     deep breath and came up for air. I knew that's not what I 
     needed right then. I forced some food down at one of those 
     typically priced airport cafes and waited to board the plane. 
     My chariot of disappointment was approaching ready to guide 
     me to the land of reality. I had no other options but to face 
     the facts.
       The airplane took off from Dallas with one more stop: home. 
     The flight was only about an hour and a half long. It felt 
     like an eternity with the lack of sleep and emotional stress 
     I had put my body through in the last 24 hours. When I saw 
     the Mississippi River laid out like a big slithering python 
     surrounded by mosquito infested cotton fields, I knew I 
     was home. The first thought I had was of a country music 
     song, ``Walking in Memphis.'' How ironic. I was touching 
     down in the land of the delta blues in the middle of the 
     pouring rain. It's like they say, ``When it rains it 
     pours.''
       I came down the 2 mile long escalator and saw my wife and 
     children waiting for me along with my childhood best friend. 
     It felt as if the emotional monkey had been knocked off my 
     back. I wasn't going to have to play this hell of a hand I'd 
     been dealt alone: ``Maybe they could help me find that key?''
       The ride home was a good one. It relieved some of the 
     tension momentarily. We talked about how we've all been, 
     what's been going on in our lives, and not the fact that my 
     father had just lost his life. It may sound as if we were a 
     little selfish, but it was a healthy way for us to escape the 
     nasty reality of what's to come. My father had died and I 
     didn't want to believe it.
       The morning of the funeral came and I felt as if I had been 
     the one who had died. The weather painted a perfect picture 
     to set the stage for the gloomy nightmare I was about to 
     face. The rain poured down profusely without any hope of 
     letting up and the wind blew an evil chill upon my face. I 
     felt the power of God upon my face, and I knew faith was all 
     I needed to help carry me through this. I hoped, I thought, 
     and I asked: ``Is this my key: faith?''
       I had decided to wear my dress blues to the funeral. My dad 
     was in the Navy for 8 years, so I knew that he would 
     appreciate it. I felt it was my duty to honor him. He had 
     always told me how proud he was of me for joining the 
     service. He was the type of guy who thought every young man 
     should do a little time for this country. I polished my shoes 
     and pressed my uniform better than I ever had before for any 
     inspection. Everybody told me he would have been proud. I 
     thought to myself, ``He is proud.''
       The whole family met at my grandparents' house so we could 
     ride to the funeral home together. I nervously got into the 
     limo with my brother and sisters still dreading the reality 
     of the situation we were facing. The ride to the service 
     provoked an inebriated sense of loneliness except for the 
     vague sniffles and whimpers I heard from my younger sisters. 
     The reality of the horrifying situation we were facing was 
     inevitable.
       When the limo pulled into the parking lot of the funeral 
     home, my entire body was paralyzed with fear. The cars of the 
     people paying their respects were lined up for days. The 
     thought of having to walk into that place of death with all 
     the mourners in there was terrifying. I just sucked it up and 
     told myself to be strong for my younger siblings. I tried to 
     tell myself to be faithful: ``Faith! That could be your key, 
     Scott. Remember it can carry you through anything.''
       My wife and I walked through the enormous wooden double 
     doors and into one of the most beautiful, yet horrifying 
     scenes I had ever experienced. Every step I took felt as if 
     time had stopped, and my heart had skipped a beat. I hoped 
     this memory wouldn't haunt me forever.
       That's when I first saw it, the Stars and Stripes. A piece 
     of colored fabric that serves as a symbol of victory, 
     submission, pride, loyalty, and even hope. The flag that I 
     work to defend every day: the American flag, our flag, and my 
     father's flag. It was draped over his coffin like a 
     protective shield carrying him home, away from all his mortal 
     pain. My throat had begun to itch and lumped up; it ached 
     with pain. My knees began to feel weak and sweat dripped 
     from my hands. I felt my wife's hand squeeze mine and with 
     a comforting whisper she said, ``It's going to be 
     alright.''
       I sat down and felt a great deal of relief after the 
     thousand-mile walk I had just made in 30 seconds of hell. The 
     preacher told stories of how great of a man my father was and 
     how he had enjoyed the fishing trips they had made together 
     in the past. It brought back memories of the same trips that 
     I had enjoyed with both of them, things I had forgotten, and 
     memories from my childhood that I had put away and buried. 
     Things that are sometimes taken for granted, and you don't 
     miss until they are gone. I felt guilty for forgetting the 
     times my father took out of his life to teach me what I 
     needed to know to become a man. Although the service was 
     short it did everything it was supposed to do. Families 
     shouldn't have to sit through a long public grieving.
       On the way to the cemetery, I thought about how proud my 
     father would have been of the American flag he had been 
     honored with. I wanted to do something special for my 
     grandmother. At the graveside before the coffin was lowered 
     my father's best friend, an old navy buddy, and I folded the 
     flag ceremonially and presented it to my grandmother, in 
     turn, the most honorable experience of my life.
       Later that afternoon I found out the flag had a history. It 
     was flown over the Nation's Capitol on October 15, 2004, at 
     the request of the Honorable Marion Berry. Then the flag was 
     presented to the Adams' Estate in honor of my grandfather. My 
     grandfather thought it would be nice to have it draped over 
     the coffin at the funeral, my dad being a veteran and all. 
     Later, my grandmother told me to keep the flag. At that very 
     moment I knew that the flag's journey wasn't over.
       Four months later and thousands of miles away from Arkansas 
     on the 3rd of June, 2005 USS RUSSELL DDG 59 steamed out of 
     Pearl Harbor Naval Base with a new ensign flying high. With 
     the help of a couple of my loyal shipmates we had made the 
     tribute to the old sailor possible. We flew the ensign over 
     3,500 nautical miles across the mighty Pacific Ocean en route 
     to San Diego where it was brought down on the 14th of June, 
     the

[[Page E309]]

     day the flag was officially adopted by the United States of 
     America back in 1777. It was no coincidence the flag had been 
     saved to be flown from my homeport, Pearl Harbor, to the 
     former sailor's homeport, San Diego. The flag was torn, 
     tattered, and covered in salt just the way my dad would have 
     wanted it.
       The material or size of a flag has nothing to do with the 
     importance of it. The importance lies in what the flag 
     symbolizes. It has been said that patriots express their love 
     of a country by hoisting their flag in honor. On June 3rd, I 
     hoisted our flag in honor of my father, fair winds and 
     following seas old man.

                          ____________________