Looking back over the years, I recall doing reports on World War II a few times in elementary school. On one such occasion, I interviewed my Uncle Roy a soft-spoken WWII veteran. Question after question about the war dribbled from my lips and he patiently answered each one. I was 11 or 12 years old then and today I cannot remember any of my questions or answers. Uncle Roy has since passed on, and I do not know what came of the interview with him. He was a man of great height and few words. When he smiled he grinned from ear to ear. He was gentle and soft-spoken. How unlike a warrior going into battle. I am sure he never shared the terrors of war, the loneliness of being so far away from his close-knit family, nor the scars of seeing death and destruction. How unlike a warrior yet fighting to bring some semblance of peace to each remaining day. I don't know much about my Uncle, but I know he took the time to share a bit of his history with me. He is a gallant warrior in my world.
In my hometown around the same time as my interview with Uncle Roy, there appeared in our newspaper a story about a Veteran's Day parade planned with an invitation that all should attend. I strolled downtown on that Saturday and was shocked to find very few people attending the parade. This made me very angry and I took this as a serious lack of patriotism on the part of my town. You see, when you are not quite a teenager, the world centers around me...of course. Anyway, I was steaming mad and decided to write a letter to the editor in our hometown paper. I explained my disappointment to the world for their lack of patriotism and chastised those who were not there saying that Russia (remember this was the Cold War era) would indeed take over the world if we did not stand up for our beliefs and model patriotism. Later in the week a gentleman called my mom and said how proud she must be of me for writing such a letter. Whew! My family is and always was very patriotic. A number of mom's brothers and family members were involved in World War II and then the Korean War. War seems to be ever-present in our world, doesn't it? What is the opposite of war, anyway? Some say peace, but even in "peaceful" times warlike behaviors abound. Is the opposite of war - normalcy - an existence of routine? Armies must instill routine in the lives of soldiers, because on the battlefield nothing is normal. I think the opposite of war is a state of normalcy and uninterrupted routine. Just my take.
So today, I remember my relatives who fought so gallantly. I thank those who were able to return getting back to the business of life. For those who came back changed, my prayers are with you. War changes all of us in some way. For the warriors, war reveals inner strength and weaknesses. For those of us at home, war reveals our level of commitment to a cause whether it be strong support of the war or disapproval of the motives of those in charge. Then there are those whose backyards have now become battlegrounds and they find themselves displaced, cold, hungry, afraid, alone, sad and objectified. They are the young and the old, strong and weak, but all unprepared for such a life of despair. May God spare America from such a bleak future.
Salute - All Brave Warriors - From all Wars - Always....
Thank you for sharing this time with me. What are your thoughts about war? Peace? Routine?
Until next time...
Autumn
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2 comments:
I hate war. I absolutely hate it. There is nothing worse in this world than killing another person, whether it makes one 'patriotic' or not...fighting for yourself or fighting for your country...killing is still wrong. Unfortunately, this world will never have peace. People will always be too "something" for peace, whether it be too greedy, too power-hungry, too opinionated, too stubborn, etc. Our world has been on a slow decline for many, many years, and no one seems to care. Landfills are growing in size exponentially. Our government is becoming more corrupt by the day. The amount of information hidden from the public is disgusting. There is more pollution and disease than ever before. Poverty is more prominent than ever before. The only people that seem to care are the only people that can't do anything about it. There is a lot of good in this world, but I believe that bad is very heavily outweighing it at this point in our existence. One can only hope for a better world, but hope isn't enough. If something isn't changed soon, we're all going to hell, whether physically or mentally.
Moses, I appreciate your comments. You are so thoughtful in the way you make your points.
I choose to remain hopeful so I can help my students stay positive. It is very difficult some days.
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