I realize that this blog is intended as a “travel blog” of sorts, but I don’t think it will hurt to take a post away from that general topic.
Today, as we all are (or should be) aware, is Veterans Day. I personally think more than one day a year should be devoted to the men and women who have allowed us our freedoms. Especially since we are at war, and have been, for eight years now.
When I was younger, I remember hearing about the Desert Storm, but was too young to really grasp what was going on. It had little impact on my young life and I was privileged to not really know what war was. In history classes throughout middle, high school and college, I learned about the Civil War, World War I, World War II, and Vietnam. I learned that because of all these brave men and women who either risked their lives or gave their lives, we all have the luxury of living in this country with the freedoms that we have. But to me, war was still some exotic, far away entity that did not affect my life. I was wrong.
After 9/11, a day that everyone can recall exactly where they were, and what they were doing, was the beginning of our War on Terror. A terrifying, chaotic day filled with horror, tears, and fear of other possible attacks led to the invasion of Afghanistan. Eight years later, many Americans are frustrated with the war, the reasons we are in Iraq, and feeling that the focus was shifted from Afghanistan. In that frustration, the men and women who are fighting every day are sometimes forgotten. Whether you think Bush was an idiot of a President who got us into this mess, or whether you are behind him 100% shouldn’t affect the acknowledgment and respect of those individuals who have taken on this burden so the rest of us can go about our ‘normal lives.’
My grandfather was in the South Pacific in the Navy during World War II, and I never heard him talk about the war. My father was drafted for Vietnam, but was able to add an extra year to his tour and go to Germany because he was a physician. He may have avoided the front lines, but the war-torn and injured from the front lines came to him. He went and did his duty even though he didn’t believe the United States should’ve been in Vietnam in the first place. Finally, my younger cousin is a senior at the Naval Academy who may end up over in the Middle East sometime soon. I am sure that every family has someone who is a war veteran or is currently in the military.
I think we should take time each day to remember the fallen, to honor the veterans, and to thank those still serving.
