Deal with it, some can't!

It is extremely difficult for those of us that live in the comfort of these United States to appreciate the sacrifices of our military personnel. We are protected from the outside world from the kinds of stresses and horrors our military personnel face on a day-to-day basis. We are not talking about the physical scars from roadside IEDs or from bullets of enemy weapons. We are talking about the mental scars from watching your comrade get his leg blown off or seeing your military brother lying beside you with his life’s blood pouring out of a bullet wound that is taking his life. The scar inflicted when he sees his comrade’s lifeless eyes wide open when he has taken his last breath. Think about walking down a dirty, dusty road and seeing an Iraqi or Afghani child lying lifeless from a roadside bomb their own countrymen set to kill Americans and NATO forces.

These are the kinds of horrors that our American military men and women face daily and then must try to sleep at night (or when they can). Finally the day arrives and they have their orders to come home, back to the land of the free. Back to civilization as they remember it! But, what the average U.S. citizen does not carry everyday are those memories of the horrors of war. How do these brave men and women deal with what they have witnessed? How do they try to erase the sadness and guilt of being a part of this tragic war?

Thankfully, the greatest percentage of them somehow come to grips with it, but there is a small percentage that just cannot let it go. It eats away at them like a terrible disease. Their minds become continually twisted and tormented until they reach the breaking point. Mental therapy helps many, but there are a few that cannot find a way out of the twisted mental environment their mind has put them. The only way out is to end the torment with suicide. Such tragedies are happening far too often for our heroes. Pray for them and their families. God bless our American military men and women and God bless America!

We are veterans

We are American teenagers from big cities, small towns, and farms. We are high school and college graduates from country schools and huge universities. We are white, black, Asians, Latinos, Catholics, Protestants, Jews, atheists. We joined the Marines, Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard, and Merchant Marine. We fought in World War II on the sands of Iwo Jima and watched thousands of our friends die. We were in South Korea in rice patties and watched our comrade’s step on land mines and saw their limbs torn from their bodies. We were in Vietnam at Tan Son Nhut Air Force Base loading bombs on airplanes to stop the enemy on the Ho Chi Minh Trail. We were on aircraft carriers in the Persian Gulf during the Gulf War kicking Suddam Hussein out of Kuwait. We are in Iraq where wefreed people from the dictator Hussein that murdered his own people with biological warfare. We are in Afghanistan fighting terrorism on their home ground instead of in New York City, Chicago, or Los Angeles. Our souls are in the shadows of the Twin Towers. We are the American men and women that put our lives on the line for our family, our friends, and our American brothers and sisters to ensure the freedom we enjoy in our United States. We are the proud, the strong, the resilient, the trustworthy, the steadfast, and the brave. And now, we are veterans trying to put our lives back together. Don’t just remember us on November 11th, but know that we were there; 24/7/365 for you. Can you be there now for us? Please NEVER FORGET! God bless our military men and women and God bless America.

The Pain Never Stops

Try to think of a situation in your life when you have cut your finger with a knife or some other sharp object. Now consider that the wound festers and never heals. It hurts constantly and just never gets any better. No matter what kind of pain medication you take, the pain never stops. It is incessant. You try prescription drugs, alcohol, medical marijuana, hypnosis, but nothing stems the pain and the wound never goes away. You’ve prayed, you’ve cried, you’ve cussed, you’ve blamed somebody else, and you’ve blamed everybody else, and still no relief.

Now you begin to understand the pain and heartache that a parent or spouse is going through when they have lost their loved one who voluntarily joined the military service to serve their country. You watched them grow up or you fell in love with them and became life partners and now they are gone. Physically they are not here, but in our hearts and minds, they are present every day and night for the rest of our lives. Our hearts are breaking with sadness and pain and nothing provides relief. You’ve had counseling and friends and family have come to your side. Your spiritual advisor, pastor, priest, or other religious person has tried to bring you comfort, but the pain just persists as you keep asking yourself why? Why did my son, daughter, husband, wife have to join the military. Why did they solemnly swear to God that they would support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that they would bear true faith and allegiance to the same?

Nowhere in that oath does it say that you will die and cause pain for your loved ones the rest of their lives. The oath does not say that a pain pill will be provided your family in the event that you meet your demise on the battlefield and their pain will instantly be relieved. Life for our beloved military personnel doesn’t work that way. When that military stranger arrives at your front door and says, “It is with deep regret,” the wound is created. Nothing will ever close it until the day you join them in heaven. Life is not fair! The pain never stops. God bless our military men and women and God bless America.