Thank you to ALL of the vets who have served our country.
We all know a vet. It might be a family member, a friend, a neighbor, the guy at the bar...you might be one yourself. To all of you, thank you.
Please don't forget the vets that you don't see every day. The ones that gave more than they had to give...for you and me. I worked in a facility that housed a large number of vets, from all branches of the military. Some were enlisted men, some were officers. The facility was a licensed personal care home. These guys, all older gents, had all lost any hope of a 'normal' life. They had seen things they couldn't forget. Some took to the bottle, some to drugs. Some of them, their minds just snapped. They were, for the most part, very humble about their service. Their bodies were spent. Their days were spent drinking coffee and bumming cigarettes. They wore cast off clothes. If you saw them on the street, you'd probably just see a bum or a psycho. The reality? These are men who served our country and gave it everything they had.
PTSD, depression, schizophrenia, addiction...those are the medals they received. Yet, if mentioned, their eyes would brighten when discussing their service. On Veterans Day, I made damned sure to thank each of them, personally. They each seemed to be genuinely happy that some remembered them.
Military service has been common in my family. I was permanently disqualified, otherwise I probably would have gone career. My father was a captain. My uncle a paratrooper. My step-grandfather stormed Normandy. My cousin is a general in the USMC. Many of my close friends served. In my younger days, I used to run around with a lot of bikers. Most of them served.
Be sure to thank them ALL today. If you see a homeless person, or a drunk, or a junkie...remember, they just might have served...and gave more than they had.
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