Today am I writing from the comfort of my couch at our home in Lawton, OK. Warm cup of coffee in hand, I am watching my beautiful little girl run around the house in an over sized Toy Story T-shirt, big girl underpants, and flip flops. She has just had her morning round of chocolate milk and will soon want dry cereal in a "big-girl" bowl. She will take the better part of 45 minutes to eat this. Michelle is trying to get back to sleep after baby girl woke her up a while ago, and Lexi is lounging about as always. This is all routine, and I love it.
According to CNN, approximately 6486 Soldiers, Sailors, Marines or Airmen have lost their lives in combat operations in either Iraq, Afghanistan, or operations supporting these fronts. Unfortunately, they will never return to the families they loved and adored.
http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/war.casualties/index.html.
Their interactive map shows their hometown and where they perished. While this number is substantially lower than the tally from previous conflicts, it's important to remember that every one of these little dots on the map represent a person who is going to miss out on all of those instances that make life great. Whether your politics support the wars in either location, it is reasonable to ask that, as humans, you can think about these dots, as humans, and give them a moment of consideration. If you can't get past the politics, then dig deeper. Most Americans are connected in some way to a relative that participated and possibly perished in WWII, Korea, Vietnam, or any of the smaller conflicts in recent history. Take the time to think of them this Memorial Day. Some Grandpa or Uncle in some town I have never heard of is part of the reason we are not grilling steaks in German this weekend.
The following link is for a video made for the song "The War was in Color" by Carbon Leaf. Great song and video that really brings things into perspective. Fair warning, I haven't actually made it through the whole thing. Damn allergies.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pf29IIQuqYk
Cadence is now in sneakers, wearing sunglasses, hair is a mess, and is still working on that cereal.
Have a great Memorial Day!
Warmest Regards,
Derek
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