To all the Veterans who are members of this forum, and to those who have family who are or have served.......



THANK YOU for our freedoms and liberties!

 

Please add my thanks to the list.

 

I'm with them. Thanks to allwho have servedand those who currently serve in our military.[sm=americanasmiley.gif]

 

Man, I thought with the patriotic spirit of Harley owners, this post would light up.

I was too chicken $hit to serve. I am thankful to my son who was not and now is serving in the USMC, stationed in California after doing two tours in Iraq.

 

I guess I just don't like being wished a "Happy Memorial Day." Believe me when I say it is nothing personal, but I would prefer we recognize it for what it is, which is a day of quiet rememberance.

These are my own personal thoughts, and do not intend them to be representative of anyone else, on this forum or otherwse.

 

I guess my post was thoughtless in that aspect. May I alsooffer great respect for losses remembered on this day.

 

Negative!

Your post was certainly not thoughtless, in any respect.

People have different views....I for one, as a veteran and as one who is still active duty, look at this day in a different light.

Sure, it is a solemn day on which we pay respects to those who fell while in service to our great country. This does not however, mean that this day has to be viewed in a gloomy, despairing manner. It can be viewed with a sense of happiness as well if you put it in the right context.

Why, you may ask?

Why is because those soldiers who died......my brothers and sisters, died doing what they chose to do.....what many felt an intense calling to do; serving their country either during a time of war or a time of so-called peace. They experienced what every soldier knows might be their fate. This to me, is a great honor. Some may find that odd, but to me there is no greater act [whether through bravery or simply in battle] that a soldier may offer up to the Creator and to their country than to lay down their life for both.

Loyalty, Duty, Respect, Selfless Service, Honor, Integrity, Personal Courage..........the seven Army values, and even regardless of branch affiliation, values that all soldiers know is their creed and their watchwords.

So, when I think of Memorial Day I recall the faces I have known that are no longer here in physical form........I think of their sacrifice, their courage, their spirit and their will to do what is right in the face of certain harm or death. I think of my friend Roger who took sniper fire and died on scene when I didn't.....I think of him, I remember him, I love him even more and I honor him.....with a glad heart and a smile for he was a great friend and a great soldier.

Whether or not you view this day as sad or as happy depends upon your perspective or your experiences.

As was said, weep not for the dead.......honor them and hold them close to your heart.

So, I thank you for wishing me a Happy Memorial Day.....for it is.

 

I didn't mean for it to sound as though the remembering isn't appreciated. It is just a personal thing for me. Too many however (generally speaking) see it as nothing more than a day off to barbeque or head to Walmart for a sale. As I said, it is just a thing for "me." I was fortunate enough to be honored in the military with the duty of "Funeral Detail." I have participated in over 70 funerals, both as a pall bearer and on the rifle detail. I can think of no higher honor than to be a part of the lives of these awesome soldiers, along with their familes in their time of honor, and sadness. They always thanked "us" for being there for them. That is the deepest form of appreciation I have ever felt.

Memorial day for me was everyday when I was on that detail. Just offering my perspective about it.

I appreciate anyone taking the time to remember. Thank you.

 

The Soldier

It is the soldier, not the reporter,
who has given us freedom of the press.
It is the soldier, not the poet,
who has given us freedom of speech.
It is the soldier, not the campus organizer,
who has given us the freedom to demonstrate.
It is the soldier, not the lawyer,
who has given us the right to a fair trial.
It is the soldier,
who salutes the flag,
who serves under the flag,
and whose coffin is draped by the flag,
who allows the protester to burn the flag.

-By Father Dennis Edward O'Brien, USMC

 

We all knew what you meant. It's the thought that counts.
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