Memorial Day Tribute

Last Saturday, an old man sat near the back of a Southwest plane flying from Tampa Bay, Florida.  I didn’t notice when he boarded.  I didn’t see him for a few hundred miles until a flight attendant strolled by asking for drink orders.  After she passed me I heard her say, “Thank you for your service.”

I’ve said those words to many strangers many times.  I knew she was speaking to a veteran.  I wondered what war this man had fought in. 

He answered, his voice faint yet steady.  “It truly was my pleasure,” the old man said. 

I believed him.

After a minute I turned to catch a glimpse of the old hero.  Only his head was visible.  A black ballcap with World War II written in red rested atop his gray hair.  Five or six pins stuck out from the face of the hat.  He wore glasses and smiled although he did not see me.  He looked to be in his mid-late seventies.

I bet you’ve seen someone just like him before.  There are veterans from a half dozen wars walking around America today.  Some will be at parades, some at ballgames, some on planes, and some in your neighborhood.  They will probably not tell you what they have done, will not brag.  At most, they’ll don a simple cap to identify themselves to the dwindling number of fellow servicemen and women who share those unique bonds as fellow fighters.  We cannot travel with them through their memories if we were not there. 

All we can do is to say thank you.  All you have to do is notice them.  Happy Memorial Day.

Take a few minutes on your day off to watch this short clip.  I think you’ll be amazed.  Thanks to the Evergreen Freedom Foundation for putting these pieces together.

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