A Day of Rememberance

This is one of the days of the year that I will always carry Kleenex because I will spend most of it in tears. This morning, I attended a beautiful ceremony in which I did play. And of course the song made me cry. That did raise the level of difficulty of the piece. The best part of the service though was the ability to celebrate and give thanks for those who have served.

This morning there was a veteran with us. He has very little gray hair and moves slowly only because he was recently sick. He is 25 years old and has served in so many ways. What he has done, I can never imagine doing. It is not something I would ever be able to do and I am so thankful that he was able to. I am even more thankful that he was able to come back and that I have the privilege to call him a friend.

I don't usually post things that were not written by me, but this Remembrance Day I think I will make an exception.

It is the veteran, not the preacher,
Who have given us freedom of religion.

It is the veteran, not the reporter,
Who has given us freedom of the press.

It is the veteran, not the poet,
Who has given us freedom of speech.

It is the veteran, not the campus organizer,
Who has given us freedom of assembly.

It is the veteran, not the lawyer,
Who has given us the right to a fair trial.

It is the veteran, not the politician,
Who has given us the right to vote.

It is the veteran who salutes the flag.
It is the veteran who serves under the flag.

For the first time in 60 years we have young veterans in our midst. Some of them will not grow old as we who are left behind grow old, but some will. And they deserve our respect and eternal gratitude for what they have done. Never forget the sacrifices that have been made to secure a future for you. Remember.