Never forget

Honoring your fallen brothers and sisters this weekend. Everyone feels different about how to behave this weekend. Most of the world sees a three day weekend with sales, events and opening of bbq season.
As veterans we see the empty places in our ranks where friends once stood. We see shadows when we remember something funny with them and start to laugh realizing only you will be laughing. And we look across the table or the bar stool next to you and realize that it’s filled with another you don’t recognize because your brother hasn’t been there for a while.
As veterans we see the emptiness, loss, and the real meaning of Memorial Day and for us it is painful, bittersweet, and lonely. To have this day ‘to honor the fallen’ seems like a good thing. But it’s more of a economical holiday that does everything but remind people that someone’s life was given for your freedom.

 

Well said brother. The only ones that are going to truly mourn the loss of a serviceman or woman are their loved ones and comrads.
To expect Americans to actually memorialize our loss is a stretch. Most seem disassociated and look at memorial day as just another long weekend. It would take another threat to our nation to get the attention of the vast majority of Americans. Sad but true. Thank you for your service and God speed my friend.

 

Well put. Both of you. o7

 

Hand Salute

 

Sadly, it’s more likely to be an internal threat to the US way of life than an actual military threat. It’s all socioeconomic warfare now.

 

Locally there’s a monument that contains the names of those that are often forgotten during this time. Men who perished at sea and whose families were never properly thanked for their sacrifice.

They came from all over the world. Yet they had one thing in common. They were Sailors. Men without out whom England would have been lost. D-Day would never have happened. And not a single Pacific island would have been taken.

Who were these men? The Merchant Marine.

 

Semper Fi brothers