Beth Green's Blog - Posts Tagged "military"
Memorial Day
Thank a veteran...or a family of one.
My father served 20 years in the Air Force. He missed seeing me walk and talk the first time but instilled in me a deep respect for our great country and its military. I will never fully appreciate what it was like for my mom as she told him goodbye over and over, never knowing if it was the last time she would ever see him again. My father always returned; and for that, I am grateful. Our family lived the military life together and I still look up at military airplanes passing over with awe. If you've never been a part of that life you cannot understand the sacrifices a family makes together.
I hope you will all take a moment to thank a veteran who still lives and recognize all those who gave their lives for you and I to live in freedom. I never take that freedom for granted and I pray we will never know what it's like to lose it.
My father served 20 years in the Air Force. He missed seeing me walk and talk the first time but instilled in me a deep respect for our great country and its military. I will never fully appreciate what it was like for my mom as she told him goodbye over and over, never knowing if it was the last time she would ever see him again. My father always returned; and for that, I am grateful. Our family lived the military life together and I still look up at military airplanes passing over with awe. If you've never been a part of that life you cannot understand the sacrifices a family makes together.
I hope you will all take a moment to thank a veteran who still lives and recognize all those who gave their lives for you and I to live in freedom. I never take that freedom for granted and I pray we will never know what it's like to lose it.
I Am Not Ashamed
Just wanted to post something a little late about December 7.
I know everyone probably realized that it was the anniversary of the attack at Pearl Harbor—especially since most of the media did stories about it.
As the child of a military father, I grew up living a life of moving frequently and being among other military families quite often. We lived on base at different times as well.
Although I have never seen war first hand and hope that I never do, I am very respectful of those who serve and have served. The closest I ever came to experiencing tragedy was as a child living on base...
It was well known that if you saw the generals' car and the chaplains' car following each other that they were going to deliver bad news to someone. I remember distinctly one afternoon several of my friends and I were playing in my yard when we all noticed the generals' car and the chaplains' car turn onto our road. You have to remember that our fathers were all gone much of the time on various missions, even in peaceful times. I breathed a small sigh relief because I knew that my dad was in town at the time; but there was still a possibility of an accident.
I will never forget standing there with my friends, each one of us watching in total silence as the cars moved slowly down the street. I remember feeling my heart pounding in my chest as I prayed that they would not stop at our house; but in my heart, I also knew that this would hurt us regardless of where they went, because the families on that base were very close.
It seemed like time stood still as the cars moved toward us. Each of us held our breath and continued to watch and pray. As the cars drew near, one woman walked out of the house next door to ours and she began to cry. I will never forget the look on her face when the cars passed our homes. It was a look of both relief and fear.
Just as we were beginning to realize that our families were safe, the cars stopped two doors down from where I lived and I heard something that sounded like an animal screeching. That was when I noticed the woman from that home dropping to her knees, crumpled in a ball in her yard while several other women from other homes ran to help her. My mom came outside and immediately assessed what had happened. She rushed over to the home and grabbed the small three year old boy in the yard, who was now crying hysterically as the general stepped out of his car and walked slowly toward the grieving woman.
No words were spoken for several seconds and I stood watching the scene unfold like something from a movie. Time continued to drag and I remember my mom carrying the young toddler into our home, where we kept him until late that night. Our friend, neighbor, co-worker, husband, and father was dead—killed in a strange accident over in England during a training exercise.
It was a dark and terrible week and I will never forget it as long as I live. My father served several tours in Vietnam. He saw things he didn’t speak of for years.
I will forever stand during the National Anthem. I will never disrespect the flag. I will never burn this emblem or dishonor anyone who served.
I understand that the Constitution gives us the right to do things like sit during an anthem or burn a flag. Because of that freedom, the people who feel the need to do such things are protected and allowed to do them.
As for me and my house, we will stand.
You can do as you wish.
God Bless America.
I know everyone probably realized that it was the anniversary of the attack at Pearl Harbor—especially since most of the media did stories about it.
As the child of a military father, I grew up living a life of moving frequently and being among other military families quite often. We lived on base at different times as well.
Although I have never seen war first hand and hope that I never do, I am very respectful of those who serve and have served. The closest I ever came to experiencing tragedy was as a child living on base...
It was well known that if you saw the generals' car and the chaplains' car following each other that they were going to deliver bad news to someone. I remember distinctly one afternoon several of my friends and I were playing in my yard when we all noticed the generals' car and the chaplains' car turn onto our road. You have to remember that our fathers were all gone much of the time on various missions, even in peaceful times. I breathed a small sigh relief because I knew that my dad was in town at the time; but there was still a possibility of an accident.
I will never forget standing there with my friends, each one of us watching in total silence as the cars moved slowly down the street. I remember feeling my heart pounding in my chest as I prayed that they would not stop at our house; but in my heart, I also knew that this would hurt us regardless of where they went, because the families on that base were very close.
It seemed like time stood still as the cars moved toward us. Each of us held our breath and continued to watch and pray. As the cars drew near, one woman walked out of the house next door to ours and she began to cry. I will never forget the look on her face when the cars passed our homes. It was a look of both relief and fear.
Just as we were beginning to realize that our families were safe, the cars stopped two doors down from where I lived and I heard something that sounded like an animal screeching. That was when I noticed the woman from that home dropping to her knees, crumpled in a ball in her yard while several other women from other homes ran to help her. My mom came outside and immediately assessed what had happened. She rushed over to the home and grabbed the small three year old boy in the yard, who was now crying hysterically as the general stepped out of his car and walked slowly toward the grieving woman.
No words were spoken for several seconds and I stood watching the scene unfold like something from a movie. Time continued to drag and I remember my mom carrying the young toddler into our home, where we kept him until late that night. Our friend, neighbor, co-worker, husband, and father was dead—killed in a strange accident over in England during a training exercise.
It was a dark and terrible week and I will never forget it as long as I live. My father served several tours in Vietnam. He saw things he didn’t speak of for years.
I will forever stand during the National Anthem. I will never disrespect the flag. I will never burn this emblem or dishonor anyone who served.
I understand that the Constitution gives us the right to do things like sit during an anthem or burn a flag. Because of that freedom, the people who feel the need to do such things are protected and allowed to do them.
As for me and my house, we will stand.
You can do as you wish.
God Bless America.
