Difficult Memories for a Vet

I visited with a Veteran this past weekend about what Veterans Day means to him. He shared about his time in service and his experiences, and he also shared a story about his time deployed to another country.

"I joined after high school and looked forward to serving my country. I honestly had a tough time transitioning after high school and found that I was making some horrible choices. My dad had suggested to me that maybe I join the military. I agreed and thought it was probably the best decision I had made. I was in the military for six years and deployed three times. It was a lot of fun learning new things and making new friends. Stateside was a ton of fun, and I was in the best shape of my life. I needed that structure in my life for sure. Also, looking back now that I'm older, having access to food, shelter, and healthcare, all at the tips of my fingers, was something I definitely didn't take advantage of. I was young and dumb a few times in my career, but nothing my Non-Commissioned Officer didn't smoke (made me do physical activity for a long period of time). I enjoyed it, though; it felt good to be in great shape. My old body now definitely could use some of that. I will say, though, that it was all stateside."

"When I was deployed, those times were different. The more I did it, the more you got used to it. But that first time was tough. Work was hard, buddies died, and you never heard from the family unless it was in a letter. I know times are different now with being able to see and talk to the family with the technology they have now, but back then, it was very hard to be doing a demanding job and not be able to talk to your family about it, or see their faces, or hear their voices. Yes, your battle buddies become family, but something was still missing. But you learned to do your job and count down the days."

"There was one time when I was in the country (Iraq), and I remember having a rough day and thinking about home. I was walking back to my hooch (my room) like I normally would after my shift, and I heard a gunshot. I stopped in my tracks, and that's when I realized...someone had just committed suicide. I remember thinking, 'I guess someone else was having a rough time too.' The next day, we discovered that it was true: a Lieutenant in my unit had shot himself. Do you know what I found hard about all that was? Yes, it was very sad to know that someone took their own life, but after it was all said and done, they don't hang their pictures on the wall back at the unit stateside as if they were killed in action. They consider it cowardly to take one's life. But I don't feel it's fair to judge what they went through. This man had served his country like I did, and he actually saw more action than I did, and he protected his battle buddies. But because he chose to end his life, the company decided not to honor him. I know others may feel differently about this, but I struggled with that. Obviously, I still do since I'm bringing it up to you."

"So, what does Veterans Day mean to me, even though it's not technically the time to honor those that have fallen like we do during Memorial Day...I still have a hard time on this day, knowing so many of my battle buddies and their battle buddies lost their lives, and I think of that Lieutenant and his family, and I pray for all of them. I hope that people find time in their day when they celebrate Veteran's Day to honor ALL those who served because I genuinely believe that if you serve, you deserve respect no matter what your time in the military was like."

Please see page 6 for list of Veterans.