It is not their burden, it is our's

It is not their burden, it is our's

by
Chaplain Kathie

When we send them to get onto planes, do we think our job is done because we showed up? So did they. They showed up. Their job is just beginning but our's is never really begun at all.

When they come home, we may stand in line complaining about having to wait so long for them to come by, but what exactly is the weight of our burden? The wait itself? What did we do between the time they left and the time we stood there to welcome them home? Anything? Did we go back to our jobs, homes and lives never giving more than a passing thought to them in Iraq, Afghanistan or any other part of the world?

We managed to complain a lot about the Vietnam veterans and how they were treated so poorly, but we are still doing it. The difference is, we are just not as obvious with our apathy.

Build them a monument here and there, give them a party and call it their "welcome home" celebration, thinking we have now done our part, but then pass them by on the streets because they are begging for handouts. Judge them and never once allow our brain to contemplate how they went from risking their lives in Vietnam to homeless on our streets for the last thirty years.

It was not their burden to carry when they came home. It was our's but we never even thought about it or them. We still don't. We spent hours on signs to protest war in Iraq and supporting the war in Iraq, but did we make one single sign to protest the lack of care the wounded were receiving or support programs that were started by average citizens paying attention to do for them what the government refused to do? No we didn't. We argued with people on the other side, but did we ever once argue with them over anything that really mattered to them? Anything that was non-political was not allowed because everything became political. People too sides against each other and neither side was taking the side of the troops alone.

This was our burden and still is. It is our burden that they come home and commit suicide because they are not getting what they need to heal. 18 veterans a day commit suicide and 10,000 attempt it every year. This is not counting the active military also committing suicide because they are not getting what they need to heal. They are our burden.

They are showing up back home, wounded, no jobs, no income, trapped in the VA system without compensation and ending up homeless. They are our burden.

Stop allowing them to carry all the burden all the time all by themselves. It's time to do our part for their sake or just stop saying we do. It's better to be obviously oblivious than claim we are caring but still ignoring them.