Veteran’s Day

It is that time of year to remember and acknowledge the sacrifice and service of our Veterans. Remember, Veteran’s Day is meant to honor the living vets in our lives, and those who did not die during service (Memorial Day is for Vets who died in service to our country.) Our town has an avenue of flags down the highway as is popular in many communities across our nation. There are a large number of veterans in Alaska. Both of my vets are gone now, my Grandpa and Dad. Grandpa served during WWII as a forward scout and Dad served in the heavy artillery division in the Vietnam conflict.

Dad

The fact that both of them survived their very close calls is nothing less than a miracle. Grandpa took  gunshots in the midsection. I remember seeing all those bullet hole scars in his abdomen as a child and asking him what they were, he always told us grand-kids that they were extra belly buttons. Talking about their war experiences was difficult for both of them. War is hell. There is no other way to describe it.

Grandpa

There’s nothing glamorous about war. It changes people’s lives, for multiple generations. I look forward to the day when we have no more need for war. Even so, I am so grateful for the honorable service both of these men offered their country. I am even more grateful that they came home. They were scared, but not cowards, they did their “duty”, and they were changed forever for it. Their war experiences were passed down to the second and third generations, through the various ways that war changed them, it changed us.