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???Welcome
Home???
(Story as told to me by a
Viet Nam
Veteran
who prefers to remain anonymous)
The
other day I was walking into the local Wal-Mart store when I noticed an
older man walking beside a younger man. The younger man was wearing
army fatigues.
I
was curious so I stopped and asked, ???Excuse me young man, but I was just
wondering if you were in the service or are you just wearing fatigues?"
The
young man stated that he was really in the army and then his Dad added
in a strong voice that was filled with pride, ???This is my son and he has
just returned from his second tour in Iraq."
I
told him how glad I was that he had returned home safely and then I
said, ???Young man, I would like to do something for you that no one
outside of my family did for me when I returned home from serving in
Viet Nam.???
???What is that???? he asked.
???I??™d
be proud to welcome you home by shaking your hand if I might and say
thank you for your service to our country,??? I said as I held out my
hand.
The
young soldier and his Dad both stood a little taller as the young man
stuck out his hand which I readily grasped and we just stood there, the
three of us, with our right hands joined. We were three strangers drawn
together by a common bond, we all understood, not needing to say
anything more.
After nodding to each other, I started to break the grasp and walk away
but the young soldier seemed to have something on his mind as he
hesitated, and then he stopped me before I could move. He was quiet for
a moment and then he looked me straight in the eye and then he ever so
clearly uttered the words, "Thank you . . . and . . . Welcome Home???.
We
then parted company as we went our separate ways. I finished buying the
supplies I needed, walked on home, and oh yeah ??¦ I cried.
(Anonymous Viet Nam Veteran)
We
often forget to be thankful to those who serve our country, protect us
from terrorism, and preserve our freedom. We have veterans living today
that have served us in WWII, Korea, Viet Nam, and The Persian Gulf. We
have those on active duty who are serving our country right now in Iraq
as well as other places around the world.
Today
the average age of a WWII Veteran is 81; we are quickly losing them from
the battlefield of life. They are now leaving us at the rate of 1500
per day. I see many of them carrying our flag in parades and
participating in military funerals. They tell me the veteran??™s
organizations need more veterans to help them with these duties now.
This is due to the failing health and the deaths of most of the WWII
veterans who have kept these organizations alive with their unswerving
dedication and patriotism. Perhaps it??™s time we expressed appreciation
with a card or a phone call to someone we know personally while there??™s
still time. It shouldn??™t have to be Memorial Day or Veteran??™s Day for
us to be appreciative toward all of our veterans no matter where they
served. The point is that they served and gave of themselves that we
might live in freedom.
We can also show our appreciation to those
serving us right now by writing letters, sending e-mails, or sending
packages to our soldiers. * Today
is a good day to be grateful, there??™s no time like the present and it??™s
the only time that we have for certain. When we see or hear of a
soldier coming home from war, most important of all, let??™s remember to
give them a heartfelt, ???Thank you . . .
and . . .
Welcome Home!???
Pamela
Perry Blaine
January, 2006
*Link
to a site for more information on ways to support our troops:
Pam lives in
Missouri
with her husband, Michael. She enjoys composing music and writing
stories. She writes "Pam's Corner" for her local newspaper, The
Edina Sentinel. Pam and her husband are active in their church
where she plays piano and he is music leader. They have a CD available
called, "I'll Walk You Home". The title song is about her lifelong
friend who died of cancer. You can hear this song on her website: http://blaines.us/PamyPlace.htm
Several of her stories have been published on the internet as well as in
books such as The Miracle Of Sons, 2The Heart/People Who Make
A Difference, and A Tribute To Moms. Her goal is to write to
encourage others and to write stories for her children and
grandchildren so that stories and family history will be preserved.
My Website:
http://blaines.us/PamyPlace.htm
Send Pam an e-mail and let her know what you thought of her story: pamyblaine@blaines.us
)
??.?·?? ??.?·????) ??.?·*??)
( ??.?·?? (??.?·?? ??.?·??
`?·-?»Pamy
"Security is not the
absence of danger,
but the presence of God"
My Website:
http://blaines.us/PamyPlace.htm
e-mail:
pamyblaine@blaines.us
"NO ONE IS USELESS IN THIS WORLD
WHO LIGHTENS THE BURDEN OF
ANYONE ELSE"
http://www.greatcom.org/laws/englishkgp/default.htm |
