August 24th, 1861

I remember the day of July 18th, when I opened the newspaper and read about the first battle of the civil war, the Battle of Bull Run. The union was forced to flee, and many lives were lost. The union forces, commanded by General Irvin McDowell fought against the confederate forces, lead by General Pierre Beauregard. The confederates won the battle. The union is from the North and the Confederate forces are from the South. I am so thankful Samuel was not sent to war before this battle, for he could have been one of the many, who had gotten killed. Lincoln wants everyone united into a union, so he called in 500,000 volunteers to help fight against the south, for 3 years. Samuel was one of them.

There are some brave men out there who have the wits to risk their life, fighting for their region. I'm proud to say that my husband is one of them. I have learned everything happens for a reason, good and bad. The worst can come out of the best and whatever happens, you have to learn to accept it.