Consider This
In August 2005, our son had brought his extraneous gear and personal belongings home from Camp Lejeune. He was due to deploy to Anbar Province, Iraq in a few days. We stood under the crucifix in our living room and his father began to read the words of St. Paul.
"...Therefore take up the armor of God, that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and stand in all things perfect....".
With Holy Water from Lourdes, we blessed his head, heart, hands and feet and kissed him gently. He walked out the door onto the front porch and slowly turned around.
Without a word his eyes spoke from his soul. It was beautiful and terrifying to behold. That look will be with me until the end of my days.
On Election Day, November 2006, I stood in a chilly downpour outside a polling precinct in Powhatan, VA handing out literature on behalf of Senator Allen and the Republican ticket. A strong gust of wind had me turn my back to the parking lot.
When it subsided, I turned around and faced those same eyes, that same look for the second time. It was a young man wearing an OIF ballcap. For a moment we said nothing, he just stood there in the rain with those eyes speaking volumes.
And then he said, "Thank you for being out here today." And I tried not to cry and told him it was I who should be thanking him. We spoke a little about his deployments and how important a successful outcome for this election was for the Troops still overseas.
As we spoke, his eyes never left mine and I will carry that look with me to the end of my days.
I will also carry with me the burden of shame that we as a country put these brave Warriors in harms' way and then let them down when they needed us most.
You won't be hearing much about how these men and women feel in the media or on the blogs but believe me, if we did, it would break our collective heart, assuming we had one.
"...Therefore take up the armor of God, that you may be able to resist in the evil day, and stand in all things perfect....".
With Holy Water from Lourdes, we blessed his head, heart, hands and feet and kissed him gently. He walked out the door onto the front porch and slowly turned around.
Without a word his eyes spoke from his soul. It was beautiful and terrifying to behold. That look will be with me until the end of my days.
On Election Day, November 2006, I stood in a chilly downpour outside a polling precinct in Powhatan, VA handing out literature on behalf of Senator Allen and the Republican ticket. A strong gust of wind had me turn my back to the parking lot.
When it subsided, I turned around and faced those same eyes, that same look for the second time. It was a young man wearing an OIF ballcap. For a moment we said nothing, he just stood there in the rain with those eyes speaking volumes.
And then he said, "Thank you for being out here today." And I tried not to cry and told him it was I who should be thanking him. We spoke a little about his deployments and how important a successful outcome for this election was for the Troops still overseas.
As we spoke, his eyes never left mine and I will carry that look with me to the end of my days.
I will also carry with me the burden of shame that we as a country put these brave Warriors in harms' way and then let them down when they needed us most.
You won't be hearing much about how these men and women feel in the media or on the blogs but believe me, if we did, it would break our collective heart, assuming we had one.
posted by f mcdonald at 2:00 PM
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