May 28, 2007

Memorial Day ~A Personal Story

Below is an excerpt from an email from my very dear friend. Tracy's nephew was killed in Iraq and was laid to rest on Saturday. Her family was so worried because several groups had taken out protest petitions and they feared heckling and jeering during his funeral. Sadly, this happens all around our country ~ men who have paid the ultimate sacrifice for you and me aren't even given the respect and dignity of a peaceful and quiet burial.
In her own words. . . . . . "I wanted to let you all know that Aaron's funeral was so nice, very respectful, and very appropriate. The Patriot Riders were awesome. There was no negativity and everything was beautiful. The media was very respectful. We didn't see any protests anywhere. The ride from the funeral service to the graveside service was unbelievable. People stopped what they were doing, whether it was fishing or cutting grass, and stood at attention, took their hats off, placed their hands over their hearts, etc. There were several police officers that stopped traffic at all the lights and they saluted or stood at attention as we passed. There was a fire engine company that came to a parking lot along Mercury Blvd and all the firefighters were standing along the street with their hands over their hearts. The gun salute and the playing of Taps was so hard. The outpouring of support in Hampton was unreal. Yesterday, Aaron earned the Bronze Star, Purple Heart and a posthumous promotion to corporal for his actions the day he died."

"Aaron knew what he was getting into. He volunteered to be in the infantry. And I knew that the chances of Aaron coming home alive were not good. He fought for our freedom. He fought so that we could continue to live life like nothing was going on outside of our world here in America. He paid dearly, with his life, for us. So please, continue to remember all of those men and women who are off fighting to keep us safe and fighting so that we can continue to live in the lifestyle that we so comfortably live in. I also ask that you not only remember the lives that have been lost, but also the lives of those soldiers who have been attacked but they have survived. We always hear of the deaths of our soldiers, but we rarely hear about the soldiers who come back home with injuries so severe that many of them wish they had died in combat. And I'm not only speaking of the war in Iraq, but every war we have ever sent any of our men and women off to. Every veteran who has ever been willing to lose his life to protect ours."

11 comments:

Diane @ A Watered Garden said...

Thank you so much for sharing this emotional post on the realities of war. Prayers have been offered on behalf of Tracy and her family. This was a hard post to read, however, an important reminder. Blessings, Diane

Mindy said...

This was such a touching post... Heartfelt and real...thank you for sharing this with us.
Blessings to you and yours on this Memorial Day!

candy said...

That really touched my heart.
THAT is what I LOVE about America!
Your citizens stop whatever it is they are doing to salute or pay respect for a soilder! All I can say is WOW. I hear that everyday about Americans and I think thats why Canadians LOVE the US so much!
I hope your patriotism will rub off on my country a little bit. We love Canada but we need to be more patriotic like you are.
God Bless all of you Americans today and always!

candy from Canada

Theresa said...

I cried when I read this and prayed afterwards...that God will comfort them in their grief. Please tell Tracy and her family thank you for this young man's sacrifice.

Karen said...

Thank you for the reminder that there are families everyday that are losing their loved ones. It's so easy to forget that in our own little worlds. Our prayers and thoughts and love will be with Tracy and her family.

Jodi said...

This is indeed what Memorial Day is all about. Thank you for sharing this Susan, heartbreaking though it is. Praying for this family as they work through the grief of losing their brave, young man.

Paula said...

What an amazing letter! Thank you for sharing it with us on this special day.

Susan said...

Thanks for posting this Susan. It is so touching. Glad everyone showed them the respect he so rightly deserved.
Susan

Adrienne said...

Susan, thank you for posting the email from Tracy. It puts today into perspective. I was deeply moved and full of gratitude to her son and to her and her family for the sacrifices they have made for us. I will pray for them as they walk through what would be an unthinkable grief. A grateful citizen, Adrienne

Paula said...

Very touching. It's nice to know people held this young man's sacrifice in such high esteem. Thank you for sharing.

Christie Belle said...

I am so glad that the protesters didn't get to the funeral. That burns me up more than anything. This was a hard post to get through, but very fitting for Memorial Day. God Bless our fallen heroes, and their families. Thank you for sharing.