Not that we need a certain date to thank those who choose to defend the liberty that the rest of us enjoy, but today especially is one where we should remember those who gave all in the name of freedom.
Please excuse the cross posting but just wanted to add this:
My dad was just old enough to enlist when this happened, Pearl Harbor. His brother was two years older. Both went down and enlisted on Dec. 9th after hearing about Pearl Harbor on the radio. My dad joined the Army Airborne Artillery, his brother the Rangers. Both saw action in Europe. Dad came back un-harmed after 4 years, his brother came back minus an eye and a hand from injuries (but with a beautiful British bride <g>). Their uncle was a prisoner of war in Germany for the duration of the war. My dad and his brother we unseperable, they built their homes next door to each other, their uncle a little ways down the road. They were always together and I grew up on plenty of war stories.
Dad has been gone 26 years, his brother 16. I still think about their commitment and bravey as young men, especially every December 7 th. I have worn my Dad's paratrooper wings on a chain around my neck every day since he passed.
Bless you Dad.
Tony Miller
A very moving tribute Tony.
My father as well was a bombadier in WWII; shot down in two planes; spent time in a POW camp in Bulgaria. I never heard him ever discuss the war and learned most of this from a diary he kept in the POW Camp. I found it while we were packing up the house when we moved him into an Alzheimer facility. He's been gone for 8 years now but he was a great, but very common and caring man.
Watch the Band of Brothers DVD series. It is a great story about the young people who fought to keep us free.
Polished my Great Uncle Ben's Purple Heart today. He died at the Battle of Okinawa.
Wherever you are Uncle Ben, I salute you.
He was a master sargent. I wear everyday the belt buckle he wore as part of his uniform.
So remember the sacrifices of the Second World War ... and the First while you're at it. Pass on that emotion to the next generation ... and hope that they never find something bad enough to really replace it!