who has given me permission to post same, by saying,
"You have my permission to use this but you really don't
need my permission. You're a Veteran, you don't need
anyone to give you permission to do anything."
I only know him by the name of, "ICEDVD".
I wish all Veterans had his passion.
What is a Vet?
He is the cop on the beat who spent six months in Saudi Arabia sweating
two gallons a day making sure the armored personnel carriers didn't run
out of fuel.
two gallons a day making sure the armored personnel carriers didn't run
out of fuel.
He is the barroom loudmouth, dumber than five wooden planks, whose
overgrown frat-boy behavior is outweighed a hundred times in the cosmic
scales by four hours of exquisite bravery near the 38th parallel.
overgrown frat-boy behavior is outweighed a hundred times in the cosmic
scales by four hours of exquisite bravery near the 38th parallel.
She (or he) is the nurse who fought against futility and went to sleep
sobbing every night for two solid years in Da Nang.
sobbing every night for two solid years in Da Nang.
He is the POW who went away one person and came back another - or
didn't come back AT ALL.
didn't come back AT ALL.
He is the Parris Island drill instructor who has never seen combat -
but has saved countless lives by turning slouchy, no-account rednecks
and gang members into Marines, and teaching them to watch each other's
backs.
but has saved countless lives by turning slouchy, no-account rednecks
and gang members into Marines, and teaching them to watch each other's
backs.
He is the parade-riding Legionnaire who pins on his ribbons and medals
with a prosthetic hand.
with a prosthetic hand.
He is the career quartermaster who watches the ribbons and medals pass
him by.
him by.
He is the three anonymous heroes in The Tomb Of The Unknowns, whose
presence at the Arlington National Cemetery must forever preserve the
memory of all anonymous heroes whose valor dies unrecognized with them
on the battlefield or in the ocean's sunless deep.
presence at the Arlington National Cemetery must forever preserve the
memory of all anonymous heroes whose valor dies unrecognized with them
on the battlefield or in the ocean's sunless deep.
He is the old guy bagging groceries at the supermarket - palsied now
and aggravatingly slow - who helped liberate a Nazi death camp,
or the old guy greeting you at Wal Mart who watched from afar as the
Viet Cong cut off the arms of the children they had just vaccinated.
And they wish all day long that their wives were still alive
to hold them when the nightmares come.
and aggravatingly slow - who helped liberate a Nazi death camp,
or the old guy greeting you at Wal Mart who watched from afar as the
Viet Cong cut off the arms of the children they had just vaccinated.
And they wish all day long that their wives were still alive
to hold them when the nightmares come.
He is an ordinary and yet an extraordinary human being - a person who
offered some of his life's most vital years in the service of his
country, and who sacrificed his ambitions so others would not have to
sacrifice theirs.
offered some of his life's most vital years in the service of his
country, and who sacrificed his ambitions so others would not have to
sacrifice theirs.
He is a soldier and a savior and a sword against the darkness, and he
is nothing more than the finest, greatest testimony on behalf of the
finest, greatest nation ever known.
is nothing more than the finest, greatest testimony on behalf of the
finest, greatest nation ever known.
So remember, each time you see someone who has served our country, just
lean over and say Thank You. That's all most people need, and in most
cases it will mean more than any medals they could have been awarded or
were awarded.
lean over and say Thank You. That's all most people need, and in most
cases it will mean more than any medals they could have been awarded or
were awarded.
Two little words that mean a lot, "THANK YOU."
It's the soldier, not the reporter, Who gave us our freedom of the press.
It's the soldier, not the poet, Who gave us our freedom of speech.
It's the soldier, not the campus organizer, Who gave us our freedom to
demonstrate.
demonstrate.
It's the soldier, Who salutes the flag, Who serves others with respect
for the flag, And whose coffin is draped by the flag, Who allows the
protester to burn the flag.
for the flag, And whose coffin is draped by the flag, Who allows the
protester to burn the flag.
JUST SAY 'THANK YOU', THIS MEMORIAL DAY
