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What Is A Veteran? |
2005-11-11 |
by Marine Corp chaplain, Father Denis Edward O'Brian Some veterans bear visible signs of their service: a missing limb, a jagged scar, a certain look in the eye. Others may carry the evidence inside them, a pin holding a bone together, a piece of shrapnel in the leg - or perhaps another sort of inner steel: the soul's ally forged in the refinery of adversity. |
Posted by:Steve |
#11 I just finished watching the celebration at Arlington Cemetery with Vice President Cheney. It really stirs up many emotions, how much I truly love our country, and what we stand for and defend. Thank you to all of our veterans. In our neck of the woods, we have a small group that frequently gathers items to send over to Iraq and Afghanistan to support our troops. Now we're collecting for Christmas, so as to give those a sense of home while away fighting for our freedom. Knowing that all over our country these small groups are organizing and sending out items to help, does my heart good. It's as though we're "mom's" to all of our son's and daughter's, and are so very proud of them all. I'm planning on going down the hill to Denver to go to Ft. Logan cemetery, where Danny Deitz and others are buried. It is so important to honor our dead, and show appreciation for their ultimate sacrifice. At a local establishment here, "The Bucksnort Saloon", there's a plaque that tells of a Navy SEAL's reunion that occurred here. Dunno if it's real, but it brings joy to think that this place was once occupied by hero's. Because of this, I also plan to enjoy a tall one for all of our servicemen and women at the end of the day. |
Posted by: Jan 2005-11-11 11:25 |
#10 Thank you. As I sit at my desk, I can faintly hear the voices of young children singing songs of praise to our veterns on this hallow day. Tears well in my eyes for each man that entered our gym this morning. All so pround, so strong, so worthy of my gratitude. My tears also come for the thoughts of my brother who on this day is performing the same brave acts that these men once so willingly performed, too. I wonder if our schools will still allow little children to sing these patriotic song we all cherish today when my brother is older, weaker, grayer, and more wrinkled. God, please continue to Bless the USA |
Posted by: RGBS 2005-11-11 11:15 |
#9 Well put Father, and thanks to all that served and those who serve today. |
Posted by: Cyber Sarge 2005-11-11 10:36 |
#8 A big thanks to all our vets: I'll be calling that retired Marine I call my Father in Law, whom y'all helped a while back with his hearing aid, to thank him. And Zenster's got the right attitude: I too take the opportunity to thank a currently serving member of the military for his or her service when I have the chance. Let's not wait until November 11 to do that. In fact, be sure to single out and thank the vets in your community on Thanksgiving as well. my opinion: the all-volunteer military we have did not transform the way we Americans view our vets and military, but certainly turned up the intensity: if you loved 'em before, you love 'em even more now. If you hated 'em before, you hate 'em even more now. |
Posted by: Ptah 2005-11-11 09:41 |
#7 I was NAVY, you're quite welcome. |
Posted by: Redneck Jim 2005-11-11 08:08 |
#6 A slight bow of the head head,and a quite'Thank You'to all and sundry. (hope I got that right,yu'all know what I meam) |
Posted by: raptor 2005-11-11 07:41 |
#5 I'll be so bold as to admit I didn't even read through the entire article. A "vet" is anyone who has served honorably in America's armed forces. I used to think it only applied to those who fought in a theater of war. I now know better. All who serve and risk even the loss of their life in boot camp are "vets" and I salute them. In the last few years, I have adopted the habit of personally addressing and thanking every single uniformed soldier I meet in daily life. I've yet to be confronted with even one reason why I should not. The all too frequent amazement and gratitude encountered tells me that I cannot do so often enough. |
Posted by: Zenster 2005-11-11 04:51 |
#4 Excellent piece. Thx to Denis O'Brian & Steve. |
Posted by: .com 2005-11-11 02:34 |
#3 sniff.. thanks to the rough men and women who keep us safe. |
Posted by: 2b 2005-11-11 01:48 |
#2 Yes, very nice, thanks |
Posted by: Jan 2005-11-11 01:36 |
#1 Steve- Thank you so much for posting this - I've been trying to find it again since COL Dave Hackworth posted it on his site a couple of years back. Mike |
Posted by: Mike Kozlowski 2005-11-11 00:27 |