…thanks for your service, now go away
As we celebrate another Memorial Day, I am compelled to remind readers of its meaning. One word sums it up for me, that word is Sacrifice.
The past few decades saw hundreds of thousands of service men and women join military ranks. Motivations ranged from college funding, patriotism, wanting to serve and all the way through to having no other choice of earning a living.
Whether Active Duty or Reservists, they were compelled to contribute to a greater cause – something higher than themselves. They left families, jobs, friends and a casual spoiled lifestyle many of us enjoy without realizing our surroundings.
Many men and women come back from service, sometimes wounded internally, sometimes externally and always forever changed. Some for better, some for worse – but all changed.
Many never returned, being captured or killed in direct combat and/or in the support of combat operations. They left behind wives, husbands, children, relatives and friends. Those that will never again see them, talk to them or feel familiar warm embraces.
How do we recognize them? Save for a few holidays – some have bumper stickers (made outside of the US), magnets and an occasional thanks to a uniformed service person. Today, marks a day of remembrance, take a few moments to remember and reflect….and do something.
What can you do to help?
Actively support organizations that help our warriors return to civilian life and contribute, to return to whatever normalcy they can and help support the families that they leave behind.
http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/
…make wise choices
-sk
