As I sat and watched the National Memorial Day Concert from Washington D.C., the images were stirring. It reminded me of an image that will stay with me forever. When visiting our Capitol a few years back our tour took us to the Vietnam Memorial Wall. As I was reading some of the names, I looked over and saw what I assumed was a Vietnam Veteran attempting to get a pencil rubbing of one of the names off the wall. He was dressed in a tattered Army coat, a baseball cap adorned with patches, and blue jeans that definately had seen better days. His hair was grey, long, and gathered into a ponytail. As his shaking hands struggled to accomplish the task which was so important to him, a young soldier approached. He stood in stark contrast to the Vietnam Vet with his hair "high and tight", camos neat and proper. Without a word between the them, the young soldier reached in and held the paper against the wall as the haggered vet rubbed his pencil over that unknown name. There was an unspoken bond between the two that needed no explanation.
The sacrifice that our men of uniform make on our behalf is inexplicable, no matter in what generation they served.
Thank you to those who laid down their lives so that we could enjoy freedoms we don't deserve.
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)