I served in the United States Navy for five years and I am a veteran. To carry the same title (veteran) as those men and women who served in harm’s way and many that didn’t come home, seems grossly unfair to the ones that mattered. I was never in harm’s way and never left the United States. The ones that matter, are the ones that gave and some that gave all.
Of late, I seem to be captivated by the lead up to WWII that started when Japan bombed Pearl Harbor. Until then, the US was content to watch the conflict in Europe from the shores of the United States. Everything changed on December 7, 1941, with the bombing of Pearl Harbor. The US declared war on Japan the next Day December 8th and with Japan being an ally of Germany, the United States declared war on Germany three days later on December 11, 1941. Within Four days, the United States entered two wars that would change the history of the world. The world as it was known on December 6th, ceased to exist over the next four days.
Over the next four years, 400,000 young men and women died and never came home so someone like me can sit at a computer and write a blog about that time in history. To say it is humbling to be referred to as a veteran, is an understatement. Those men and women deserved the title veteran. After WWII tens of thousands of young men and women have died in conflicts around the world so we as an American can live free.
In a little town in north Georgia named Dahlonega, every 4th of July and every veteran’s day, the town puts out white crosses along the city streets, each with a service members’ name and war they fought in. All the crosses are for men and women that lived in Dahlonega and the surrounding county and that died in service to America. The crosses are spaced out about every 20-30 feet and just driving through the town, it seems there are hundreds, maybe even several thousand, young men and women that didn’t came home alive, all from this one little north Georgia town. Multiply that by little towns and cities across America and you can get a sense of the human sacrifice over the years to keep America safe.
Thank a veteran and remember those in your family who may have served and please, by all means, recognize how blessed we are to live in American. KT