Why thank a soldier?

by
Chaplain Kathie

Camp Victory Iraq

Camp Eggers Afghanistan

Camp Eagle Vietnam

Some people say "thank you" to a soldier or a veteran without thinking about what they are thanking them for. It's easy to say the words but putting anything behind those words requires a lot more.

First, why should we thank them? After all, do we really care they served in Vietnam? What did Vietnam have to do with us? For that matter, what did Iraq have to do with us? Most of the people in this nation believed sending troops into Afghanistan was a "just" war and in response to 9-11. Do we thank them more because we approve of it? We have an all volunteer military now, but up until the Gulf War, there was a draft and many were sent because their numbers came up. It happened in WWI, WWII and Korea as well. Is it wrong to thank them when they didn't want to go? How do you separate any of them? You don't. At least not if you really know why you are thanking them in the first place.

When you think about the wars you approve of you call them heroes. The Patriots of the Revolutionary War stepping up to set this nation free. The men fighting in the Civil War trying to set slaves free or fighting to keep them on the other side. The calvary soldiers fighting against the Indians so settlers could have their lands. We may view them as heroes but it's for sure the Native Americans don't feel the same way. Yet even with that, generations later, they joined in the rest of this nation's battles fighting in wars right next to calvary soldiers descendents. Pretty remarkable when you think of that just as soldiers from the south, they also fight right next to descendents of Northern Soldiers. WWI and WWII were seen as "just" wars while Korea was debated. Vietnam is still debated and the cause of a lot of heated arguments. The Gulf War some say didn't last long enough to complain about it but the legacy lives on with the wounded of the still unknown cause behind Gulf War Syndrome. All of this taking us right back to where we are. Men and women serving in harms way no matter if you agree with it or not. This we thank them for.

They go into the military for all kinds of reasons. They train with people from other parts of the country. They learn their jobs and wait for orders. This is what we thank them for. Doing what they are asked to do, going where they are asked to go and risking their lives for what the nation's leaders say they need to do. They do not serve one President and then stop when he is replaced by another election. They do not serve one political party following only the orders of the a fellow Republican or Democrat. They serve under one flag. The same flag we celebrate every July 4th and fold perfectly after taking it off of one of their caskets. This we thank them for.

But their giving and serving doesn't end there. They come back to our cities and towns, joining the rest of us knowing we will never be able to understand them or what they have inside of them that let them do what they did, see what they saw, go where they went. Yet they go into law enforcement putting on the uniform of police officer or sheriff's deputy. They go into the National Guards, still willing to risk their lives to take care of the rest of us planning on responding to disasters while the rest of us are dazed, confused and suffering from whatever loss we had, all the while they have lost homes and their own families are in need, but they put us first. They enter into fire departments ready once again to risk their lives for the rest of us. And yes, some go into business but will be the first one to rush out to help someone in need when there is a car accident across the street, or get out of their car to push a broken down car in the road. This we thank them for.

Still, there is more. They come back and take on the burdens of other veterans helping them with whatever they need. They join together as we saw this last Memorial Day in ceremonies across the nation and in Washington DC. They come together at other times during the year holding bike runs for charities, showing up at airports to welcome home the troops and escorting the hearse talking a fallen soldier to their grave. They show up at funeral parlors trying to find out who the ashes collecting dust belonged to as with the Missing in America Project, just so they could receive and military funeral with honor guard. They volunteer at homeless shelters to take care of the least among us, letting them know someone cares. This we thank them for.

Perhaps the most forgetful thing we should thank them for is that once they put on the uniform of whatever service they entered into, Army, Marine, Air Force, Navy, National Guard or Reservists, no matter if they were a sniper or a medic, once that uniform comes off, they will forever be a tiny fraction of the rest of us because they become a veteran for the rest of their lives, forever changed. While this we forget to thank them for and then when they come home wounded, we forget about them. When they come home especially with wounds no one can see on their body, they are really unnoticed. Sure we can thank them with words, but really thanking them requires us to actually do things for them for a change.

Taking the time to contact your local officials and make sure they do not cut the state VA budget because they are veterans no matter what the economy is like.

Taking the time to write your US senator or Congressman to make sure the funding gets to the veterans in your state needing help especially in a bad economy.

Reaching out to a new veteran going back to college and feeling out of place.

Taking a widow out to lunch or making a phone call to let them know you care.

Donating used clothing to the veterans organizations calling you instead of selling them for pocket change at your yard sale.

Really thanking them requires you think about them not just on Veterans Day, Memorial Day or the 4th of July. It's thinking about them everyday because everyday they carry with them the thoughts of what they were willing to sacrifice for you. Give them something to thank us for, for a change.