…Before Self

    Today, I have the freedom to speak my mind, the freedom to tell other my thoughts, the freedom to listen (or not) to others.  I have these freedoms (and many others) because of a group of men and women who chose to blaze a trail that not all people would be willing or able to walk.  I owe my freedoms to the millions of men and women who were willing to put their lives on the line to obtain and preserve my (and your) freedoms.  I thank God there are still young men and women that are willing to stand the wall, lay in the ditch, sail the oceans and climb into the jets to defend my freedoms.  I know as I sleep they guard, as I work they have my back, as I relax they stay alert. 

    In 1776 it started with nothing more than a rag-tag group that stood against a well organized and financed army.  They had little more than an idea of how they would like to live their lives; they had little more than a vision of a free future.  On a foundation of an idea and a vision they built the greatest nation on Earth.  Through the years following 1776 our freedoms have been challenged, sometimes on our own doorstep, often in far-off lands but each time there have been people who stood-up to meet these challenges.  Sometimes the reasons they were called was clear, other times the connection wasn’t as clear.  These men and women have one thing in common, each of them have pledged an allegiance to the nation.  For many years now they have said, "I… do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same…”  Then they put on the uniforms of the United States military. At that moment they became “Veterans”.

    I have been amongst Veterans all my life, Uncles, Cousins, Friends, Co-Workers even my Wife.  To be honest with you, I don’t know the stories of what most of them went through or what they felt about their service, it’s something they may not want to relive and I respected that, so I didn’t ask…   But one time I was given a glimpse into a fellow veterans feelings.  Sitting with my Father-in-law watching a movie called “RED DAWN” a scene came up with a tank and infantry battle in snow covered hills and valleys, I could see he was shaken and tensed up.  I kind of quietly asked “You OK”.   That’s when he opened up “It looks like Korea” and he started to tell me about what he went through and saw.   The conversation went on for a few hours and then off and on over the years (more after I came back from the Middle East), I don’t know if he had ever spoken to anyone else.  He lived in south central Indiana in a fairly hilly area, from that time on during the winters I occasionally saw a look in his eyes and a tenseness in his jaw as he gave a dead gaze over the snow covered hills of his own home.  Others may have not noticed but I knew.  Even after all the years, in the safety and comfort of his own land he paid the price for answering the call of his Nation… And putting “Service Before Self”.  Art passed away December 15, 2002.

     Today is the day we set aside to thank the Veterans of our armed services, to pause for a moment and remember what they have given to ensure we keep what we have.  In times of conflict and upheaval many can become confused on why we ask troops to put “Service Before Self”, why do we send troops to fight in foreign lands.  I would like to answer that question.  We fight in the backyard of our enemy today so you don’t fight them on your front porch tomorrow.

 

Thank a Vet today for the battle you

don’t have to fight tomorrow

The TOMCAT