I Don't Know About the Rest of You...

http://www.stripes.com/report-sexism-part-of-military-academies-culture-1.261301

I don't know about the rest of you, but I will not stand for it.  I am a mother, and we mothers endeavor to instill in our children values, honor, and character.  How dare the military academies fail to uphold our standards.  We do not lend our sons and daughters to the United States Military without the expectation that an even higher standard will be taught and practiced.  I demand that accountability be enforced at the highest levels. If you are in leadership, and incapable of enforcing the standards which are the stated guiding principles of each of the branches of service, you are not the man or woman for the job.  Step aside and allow those who are to lead.  Just because you are selected as a general office, does not mean you have the skills, character, and devotion to sacred duty to be a general officer, as so many have recently proven.

I watch those commercials on television where you use parents interacting with their sons and daughters, every insinuation, every direct message, every nuance of language indicates you will promote and permit only honorable behavior among the troops.  However, recent courts martials indicate that while leadership seems to now be returning to promoting honor by enforcing accountability, there has been a period of overall failure of Army leadership.

Once again the headlines indicate not all is right, and in the highest institutions of leadership training.  How possibly can those of the youngest coming into military service be expected to serve honorably in all they do, if you are allowing their future leaders to be influenced and trained by leadership which cannot within the restrictive environment of the service academies control this particular neglect of honor?  Who is at the wheel?  What about their own lives, skills, and character allows this? Is it that even though you preach something different, you do not believe overall honor to be an achievable goal among the recruits of West Point, therefore it falls from the focus of your mission?  I know many graduates of West Point, and I am here to tell you devotion to sacred duty and honor is achievable.  There are graduates from decades ago, when popular thinking was against women in the military, who easily embrace and practice equal respect for all serving in our military, and they are skilled enough in leadership, that they can and do enforce it among those they lead.

MEN OF OUTSTANDING LIVES AND LEADERSHIP LIVE ON LONG AFTER THEY ARE GONE

Some time back, I had the chance privilege of meeting and coming to love as dear friends the widow and children of one of Afghanistan's finest sons, Mohammed Daud Daud.  He was assassinated by vile men on May 28, 2011, but when a man of this statue is killed by his enemies, the enemies are the ones who fail.  For those among us who live in the knowledge of the honor and courage of the man who stood firmly until the end for those he loved and the highest ideals of humanity, he only shines brighter, his words are remembered even more vividly, and what he stood for is lifted higher, when the enemy destroys.

 So it is with General Daud, whose life and ideals live on, only being etched in the minds and hearts of the people of Afghanistan and the world more deeply.  His life calls more clearly to those left behind, especially the youth of Afghanistan, urging that they live above the common man.  His life calls to all and urges significant living, devotion to honor, and bravery to face evil, never flinching.

In a world so hungry for the examples of lives spent in such meaningful living, that their light shines on, even in death and beyond, Mohammed Daud Daud remains a light on a hill.  The truth of his life remains to inspire, make hearts brave, and strengthen the resolve of those who would follow his example.

As I woke this morning, my mind was on his widow and children, and I considered how much they mean to me, and how fortunate I am to have come to know them and of the life of Mohammed Daud Daud.  With this consideration, came a sense of my own responsibility concerning this blessing.  It is not right that I know what I have learned from the lives of he and his family, without doing my best to share the light in which he lived, and they do still.  So I am recording and sharing his story for those in my own sphere of influence, and I trust it will further the influence of such a life so well lived.  This day, the life of Mohammed Daud Daud will spur me to higher living, to greater commitment, and to more diligence toward the things which are really important at the end of the day.  I am going to record stories of his life, as told to me by the woman he so deeply loved and cherished, in the days ahead in this blog, knowing that whoever finds them will be inspired to greater living.  As always, in my prayers I will ask for the strengthening and care of the family he left behind.  

I can think of no better place to start than with these words:

 
"The challenge of leadership is to be strong, but not rude; be kind, but not weak; be bold, but not a bully; be thoughtful, but not lazy; be humble, but not timid; be proud but not arrogant; have humor, but without folly."

The Lonely Soldier

As Randy and I have worked with Warriors and their families, we have found that when Warriors experience dark things in combat which haunt them to a degree that it is life interrupting, they often find themselves reluctant to tell anyone what they are going through.  Especially in the case of Military Sexual Trauma, the tendency is to hide from everyone what has happened.  There are varied reasons why Soldiers do this, all the way from feeling as though they are failing their unit,  or from fear of reprisal, or from fear of ridicule, to efforts to protect their loved ones from knowing how deeply they are suffering.  There are many more reasons as well.

Human beings are a herd or flock species.  We have built into us the need for relationships with others of our kind, and of communicating to them both our triumphs and our tragedies.  In the midst of the very physical bondage of PTSD, (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder,) I would say a person is more in need of that human communication than at any other point or stress in life.  Isolation seems to be a part of the sufferings of Soldier's Heart, which is what PTSD was known as during the American Revolution and the Civil War.

This condition was around even for one of the mightiest warriors of them all.  King David wrote many of his psalms from a place of deep pain and suffering, obviously finding himself affected by depression.  It can follow any Soldier home from the battle field.

When as human beings, we sometimes lock down our fears and try to hide them even from ourselves, when we put on our false faces, and put every effort into keeping secrets that are ripping us apart inside, it will be to our detriment.  That is when a feeling of profound isolation can begin to steal into our beings.  In a crowd we can experience feeling totally alone and abandoned.  Even when, if they only knew, our families and friends would rush to our aid, due to some circumstance that seems to the individual insurmountable, Warriors will hide their pain, their fear, and their suffering.  The feelings of total isolation that result eat at what mental health they have, causing even more problems. 

If you know a Warrior, or a family member of a Warrior whom you suspect to be suffering from PTSD, please, resist the urge to ignore it in hopes that it will resolve on its' own, most likely it will not.  There are many military programs in place to help those struggling, however I have observed that sometimes there exists no experience of a real human connection in these programs, rather the Warrior feels the treatment provider doesn't understand, or care either.  Their "services" appear to them to be just how these individuals make their living, and the very people endeavoring to provide help leave them feeling even more alone and misunderstood.  Sometimes a service person's negative feelings are grounded in accurately assessing the provider, some do only reach out in order only to get a paycheck.  The needed genuine human compassion is just not there to be had.  That tends to outweigh any benefits the particular treatment might actually yield, in spite of the worth of the treatment itself. 

The huge government bureaucracy that we know as the Bureau of Veterans Affairs, fails some Warrior somewhere every day, actually probably it fails many each day.  I can tell you from personal experience, it can be overwhelming, confusing, frustrating, and that many just give up without ever receiving the benefits owed them.  All of these factors can contribute to feelings of isolation.  The feeling that no one understands or cares grows, and the results of those feelings can be catastrophic.  

So again I urge all of you who love a Soldier, do not hesitate to tactfully reach out, you will never regret your efforts made in compassion and gratitude for service given by these men and women.  While on the other hand, there exists the possibility that in failing to act you will carry a burden the rest of your life, that might have been prevented.

In the poem which follows, I have tried to express feelings which sometimes occur, that have been described to me by those affected by PTSD.  Hopelessness, and helplessness are words that are often used to describe these feelings of being disconnected from family, friends, and the world in general.  So read my dark words, and perhaps get a glimpse of the place some of our 'Soldiers find themselves when they come home.  They experience a loneliness we cannot understand.

            The following are links that can be a start when searching for help.

• What is PTSD?
  Find out about the symptoms of PTSD and how they develop.
• Frequently Asked Questions About PTSD
  Basic information about PTSD and its treatment. Includes links to resources for getting help.
• Helping a Family Member Who Has PTSD
  Ways you can help a loved one with PTSD and ways you can help yourself.
• How Common is PTSD?
  Find out how many people have PTSD and who is most likely to develop PTSD.
• Treatment of PTSD
  Describes the treatments shown to be effective for PTSD and what you can expect from your therapist.
• Understanding PTS(D): Adapt and Overcome
  Read this interview of Dr. Matthew Friedman, Executive Director of NCPTSD, to understand more about returning from war.
• Understanding PTSD Treatment
  View this interactive module about PTSD treatment options. A companion to Understanding PTSD, it has full color photos and videos of clinicians who provide care. It can help overcome any myths you might have about PTSD treatment.
• What Can I Do if I Think I Have PTSD?
  Learn what to do and answer a questionnaire to see if you need to be assessed by a professional.

The Plan is Prayer on Labor Day

I had a discussion on Facebook just now with someone in the military whose judgment I trust.  It is a holiday here in the States, but I would remind you, around the world the War on Terror rages on. This is the conversation I had. Read the word of a weary warrior, a son, a brother, a husband, a father, a patriot... be assured, he and thousands and thousands like him are on the job.  Make time in your own life to honor and support them every day.  YOU owe them a great deal.

I have a cold fear rising up my spine, a fear that the American people do not have the will and fortitude to finish what we are about to start...
Excuse me, what our government is about to start... I wonder, will they accuse Obama of just greasing the wheels of the economy and feeding the military industrial machine? 

Buzzy Sørensen: Actually, it's a very good plan & people will be alot safer all over the world when this is finished. Has to be done.

Thank you Buzzy, I needed your assurance on that. Funny how I trust implicitly the word of someone I have never met in person, over my own government. The knowledge that people, some very, very, good people, are going to get hurt... I am a mother... war hurts me to my core. I guess that is why freedom will never be free... Please be careful, your mother would want you to, your wife has probably given up on the idea of it ever happening... but God gave you a mind and an intellect... and she wants you to as well. God implanted a generous instinct for self preservation in you, use it in generous amounts just now. I just want to leave the internet, (the puppy chewed through the T.V. cable, so no news from there until Thursday,) and go outside and garden for the next dozen or so years. Were it not for men and women like you I would, but for your sake, and for your band of brothers and sisters, I cannot.   As it is, every day I will go to that huge fallen oak in the woods, and the little platform I built for the deer hunters, and get on my knees and pray.
 
Men and women from countries all over the world are standing shoulder to shoulder working to preserve our liberties, and the lives of innocent people everywhere.  PLEASE, take a generous part of your day to pray for them.

Caption:  Had to wait an hour to fill up with diesel at €1.69 EUR/L [gas station food is the suc]. Roads clogged with tanks moving north. "Welcome brother, have a nice day".
 

Comfort Comes From the Lord, or When God Sends a Woman Flowers, He Calls Walmart!

It seems to me that often media leads the way in the strangest of behavior; I am speaking of the vilification of American companies who achieve great success.  Sometimes when men and women conceive of great companies and then personally, through hard work, sacrifice, and dedication, lead them to the greatness that was their vision, thus achieving the “American Dream,” they become a target.  As I said, for some strange reason, they always draw at least a few vocal critics.  It does not matter that they provide along the way to their success, good paying and secure jobs with benefits, for literally thousands of American citizens, or that they give back to the communities in which they conduct business, as well as pay taxes into these communities.  Often that beautiful American principle that enables one to become, as my mother and father always instructed me, “anything you want to work hard enough to become,” makes them targets of criticism.  The particular irritant for some seems to be people getting rich while achieving the “American Dream.”  That to them is just not acceptable, and in their minds must involve something sinister and evil.  When this flawed thinking became acceptable to anyone but the seriously in need of medication, and extensive mental health services, due to being haunted by paranoia, I cannot recall.   However,  the thinking is accepted by more people than one would think these days.  I could at this point share some of the highlights of the integrity with which Sam Walton lived, all he gave back, and stories that reveal his heart and intent, which will I think contribute to his going down in history as the remarkable person he was.  Instead, I would like to focus on my own personal experience with Wal-Mart, in particular the Sealy, Texas Wal-Mart, and the people who work and earn their living in this company in that same spirit with which Sam Walton first envisioned his company.

            

When we first moved to the Sealy/Bellville area we bought our dream place, 42 plus acres, partial ag exemption, big pond, 13 heavily wooded acres, a 126 year old antique barn, and a big three year old Solitare double wide with 2X6 exterior walls. (Colonel LeCompte balked at the “double wide” thing, but since he trusts me in all things, when I told him in a year he would never know it had ever been anything but an authentic Texas working ranch house, he bought it for me.)  It had some challenges, the previous owners had 9 children between the two of them, 7 still at home.  I did not know that bubble gum came in that many colors, that anyone ever let chickens roost in a bathroom inside their home, nor that weeds could become 9 foot tall.  It was explained to me that it was a variety of ragweed called “blood ragweed.”  I was soon to learn how it got its’ name.  In order to meet and actually exceed the flood plain requirements, as the pond was originally dug, the dirt had been piled higher and higher, and packed by the heavy equipment as they went, thus building the pad on which the house was to sit.  It resulted in a pad 9 feet above the flood plain, and the house was placed on that hill of dirt with only about six feet to spare at the widest area all around the flattened top.  That produced so many unique landscaping challenges.

  Arriving at our new little ranch, we had a push lawn mower, a weed eater, and a machete that Randy had used in the Malaysian Jungle Survival School.  As most of you know, my husband is Colonel Randy LeCompte, a West Point honor graduate, as well as an honor Army War College graduate, and currently serving in Baghdad, Iraq.  He and his little machete began clearing weeds, but soon we realized we needed a little more equipment.   Of course, we went to Wal-Mart on many trips for needed materials, seed, and tools, not to mention the food to fuel both of us, substantial clothing, and gloves.

My husband so cherishes every moment spent at Soldier’s Heart Ranch, which we quickly dubbed our little paradise in the making.  Soon, his mind began to realize what release he found in being home, working on the house and barn, working with the horses, or just loafing on the 1100 square feet of wrap-around porch I added.  Much of the success of my husband’s life is found in his ability to completely focus on everything he puts his hand to, and today the ranch is a reflection of that.

 

The human mind can do that.  It can also rehearse the horrors of war, even when a man or woman struggles to prevent that from happening.  My husband has always had a heart for his Soldiers who encounter problems with PTSD, the name for the biological condition that develops for some serving in war zones.  As he enjoyed using all the new tools he bought at Wal-Mart, and worked to make our property our home, he began to realize what release from the thoughts of work and soldiering he found, and what complete peace he experienced.  That was when the idea for our 501-C began.  The idea of sharing with members of the military a place to stand down, rest, and refresh from the work required from those serving along with their families began to take shape along with the rose bushes from Wal-Mart.  
 

 

 Planting and growing things was for me the best of all the good things at Soldiers Heart, because I love all forms of self-expression.  Gardening is something that renews me.  I was soon going to need things that renewed me.  






My husband deployed for Afghanistan, and the original year he was to be gone turned into eighteen months, then two years.  Life got a little harder, and as time went on harder still.  Every week I made trips to Wal-Mart, and Texas Wal-Mart people being who they are, soon I was sharing with them that my husband was “gone to war.”  They responded the way Wal-Mart people do, with words of encouragement, and by asking me each time they saw me how I was doing.  Each responce was a genuine expression of care. 

Deployments, especially extended deployments, can become lonely and depressing for those holding down the fort.  That happened to me, and one day as the deployment stretched seemingly endlessly before me, I complained to God, asking why so much was required of me.  I moaned and groaned, cried, and wondered to Him how I would ever survive.  A series of events happened that afternoon which reminded how little I really was sacrificing, compared to the suffering that goes on in this world, but that is a whole other blog…  I repented for my weakness, asked the Lord to forgive me, and then God, being my Loving Father, sent me flowers to remind me just how much He loves me, and that He is always there.

Of course, you are thinking I am speaking metaphorically, I am not.
From the time we moved to Sealy, I frequented that garden center at the local Wal-Mart.  The people who worked there had come to know me quite well.  They knew when my husband was home on leave, because he came in with me, and as my special Wal-Mart friend said… “my face was different, smiling as it used to be.”  I had left my business card for the work we do with the military with the garden center, and Carla had taken note.  After my session with the Lord, I had gone outside to work in the yard, where I always went when I needed solace.  The fact that our fledgling efforts as a 501-C had many more of those we were serving, than support from any who were giving, so I was a little short on money to spend on anything to plant during that late summer.  I took the phone from the house and laid it on the porch in case my husband called from Afghanistan, where at that time he was serving.  Need I say it was the phone I had bought at Wal-mart?  It rang and I answered, it was the manager of the garden center, asking if I would like some plants that were no longer fresh enough to sell.  She said that she thought that with some tender loving care they could be revived, and she knew of our 501-C status, and the work we were doing.  She went on to say if I could pick them up, they were mine.  When I went to pick them up they completely filled the back of my truck, and my heart.  I lovingly planted my flowers from God, and several times since I have received a similar call from her, each time on a day when my heart was faint, and I have been petitioning heaven for strength to do what is mine to do.  To remind me  once again he loves me and will see me through this, God just calls Wal-Mart.

I Know the Story of Cupid, But I Want To Talk About Love, the Kind That Causes God to Favor Soldiers

The Cupid persona upon which Valentine's Day was first established as a day to celebrate, the history of the holiday, how we came about pausing, spending money, and causing men such anxiety, is of no importance to me.  However that four letter little word upon which hangs the truth and reality of the two existences which every person will know is the single most important word, idea, concept of, and the purpose concerning both our existences.  It is also the driving force of my life in this world.

In this life, in this physical body, we exist in time.  We mark minutes, days, years, periods, our childhood, adult life, old age, and all different kinds of measurements of our physical existence in the body we were born into time with.  When that body completely fails us, time for us will be no more.  Because, just as C.S. Lewis said, we are each a soul, we have a body, and we are an everlasting being, who will spend eternity somewhere.  We will acquire another "body" when the physical creation of God that we now exist in returns to dust.  I don't have any clear idea what it will be like, this new body, but we won't ever need a replacement for it.  It will not be subject to disease or accident.  I won't sustain any fender benders, wrinkles, or failed joints and organs.  None of the typical maintenance I require now will be needed, and I will never get fat, or have my mind or thought processes be interrupted by illness, age, or accident.

I will begin my eternity existence, and there will be no more "endings" for me.  Eternity is forever, and I try to grasp that concept, but so far the only reality and truth I have lived in has been the "time" reality.  Of all that is significant in life, the thing of most significance, and which will determine where I exist in eternity, is love.

God, who has always been, not only in eternity, but who is eternity, desired to be loved and to love a being that chose to give themselves to Him in an act of volunteer love.  The Greek language. which so much of the Bible was written in. has four words for love, and I am not speaking of "eros" love, which is such a wonderful thing for a man and woman to share, and will knit them together in a way that shared physical bodies does, and which produces such a profound relationship.  That is the kind of love Valentine's Day was founded to  celebrate.  Next to the love of God, it is within marriage that the most gratifying emotional relationship a human being can know, is found.  Its' success is achieved when it is practiced as God ordained.  

Nor when I speak of this love, am I speaking of the instinctive "family love," known as "storage" in the Greek.  How binding, sweet, and powerful is the love of family.  I am having a luncheon today for friends, for whom I have great love.   That kind of "friendship" love is also greatly satisfying to the human soul, and provides such a richness for our lives.  In the Greek, that type of love is known as "philia," or brotherly love. 

I am thinking of and expressing my thoughts on "agape" the Greek word for God's unconditional love.  Nothing was created or exists for any reason other than God's unconditional love.  God knew exactly what He was doing, what would go terribly wrong, and how He would restore what went wrong with His creation of free willed beings.  He also knew what potential satisfaction and reward would be created within each free willed being, and He called what would be known from that, love.  God is all knowing, and counted the cost, and oh how great a cost it was, before He proceeded to create each free willed being, including you.  He considered the pain each of us would bring to Him in rejection of His love.  He thought of what it would be like to exist eternally loving and being loved by you, you personally.  After He contemplated these things, in His perfect knowledge and wisdom He brought you into being, knowing how wonderful and good heaven would be for you and Him.  He also described in His Word to us Himself , His Identity, His very essence, in the three word sentence, "God is love."  The purpose of each of us is love.  We were created in His image of love.

In God's desire to be loved by you, He gave exact instruction just how that was to be accomplished.  In His Word He simply stated "if you love Me, keep my commandments."  Love is expressed for God by our seeking to do what He wants us, in His great love for each of us, to do.  So many of us refuse to love God, and that is as far from my understanding as is the contemplating and complete understanding of God's love, its' depth, and its' entirety.  Those thoughts leave me in awe.

This morning in Bible study with my dear friend Brenda, we read where the Apostle Paul asked of God, "what would you have me to do?"  In that question Paul expressed one of the most visible and exceptional examples of a man's loving of God.  When you love God your heart instinctively asks, what would you have me to do.

This world of time is full of trouble, full of lies and the liars who speak them, confusion reigns in a person's life without God.  The person who chooses to live outside God's love, to carry forward by their own wisdom, makes a train wreck of their life, no matter how they judge its' worth themselves.  Ultimately in their rejection of God's love, they condemn themselves to eternal separation from love.  God offers all of us the opportunity to know Him as we exist in this world of time, and the next world of eternity, in His love.  How can I know such a thing, and not share it every day with everyone I encounter?  What better a day than Valentine's to tell once again of God's love.

I will celebrate all day long today, all the forms of love that the Greeks described, but above all else I will celebrate that God is love, and my complete knowledge, due to personal experience, of what it is to be loved by God.  Because as God described, and every good Soldier knows, "no greater love hath any man than to lay down his life for a friend, and my Savior, Jesus Christ, laid down His life, in love for me.  This is a beautiful day to celebrate God's unfathomable love.   

Losses to the War on Terror, the Stats are Out for 2012

The stats are out, 313 men and women lost their lives in combat.  As much as that grieves me, my heart collapses at the thought that 325 took their own lives as well,  I shudder to consider that there is reportedly a "storm of suicides among family members of those who have served coming."

 

Significant Living Requires This

This blog post  was created for sharing with members of the military as a way of expressing personal gratitude to those serving in the United States military.  All of the following art projects were
made by students at the Vogelweh 
Elementary School, in Vogelweh, 
Germany.  Their parents are 
stationed in Germany, serving with
one of the branches of the U.S. 
Military.  These children realize what patriotism is, and they too have sacrificed for our nation.  May God bless each one of them during this Holiday season, and bring them a wonderful New Year! 

This time of the year is so special to me, because every day I live in the true meaning and grace of Christmas.  Christmas celebrates the greatest gift ever given in Creation.  It is a time of year to formally, and with reverence, acknowledge that God so loved the world, and you and me, that he "willingly," in great sacrifice and love, gave his Only Begotten Son, that anyone who would "willingly" receive His gift and sacrifice might live their eternal existence in His presence and love, as His adopted son or daughter.  In this world humanity has struggled so long to bring it's own failures into subjection, and despite the best efforts of the most devoted among us, we remain flawed.  Still God dwells in the hearts and lives of those who have received His precious gift, directing their lives and giving peace, mercy, and grace, for all that is of this life.  We face the same challenges as the rest of the world, we get sick, lose jobs, suffer losses of all kinds, but God stands protecting us from being overcome and defeated by the evil of this world.  Nothing can separate us from His gift of love and eternal life, no matter what we must face in this life.  He has won the war by His sacrifice, and we must only endure the battles and skirmishes as faithful Warriors, until we are called home.

 

Jesus Christ was born from the linage of David of Old Testament fame.  You will remember him first as a brave young man who fought and defeated the giant Philistine, Goliath.  Goliath came out into the open on a battle field each day and challenged any man of the Hebrew army to meet him in battle, as he insulted God and His chosen people.  He was a brute of a man, huge and powerfully strong.  Anyone hearing his challenge could easily see how unlikely defeating him would be.  There had been no takers among the Soldiers David had brought food from home to that day.  David urged all of the men to meet the challenge, and take this man out who insulted God, but when none of the grown men would go, he "willingly" went out to the meet the enemy in a contest to the death.  He killed the giant with the weapons of a boy, and thereafter, he was known as a man "after God's own heart."  God loves, in a special way, those men and women with uncommon courage and the "willingness" to stand for Him,  for their countrymen, and to fight to the death all those who come to attack and conquer those who belong to the Lord.  God loves, "with His own heart" the man or woman possessed of that special quality of "willingness" to sacrifice themselves for others.  It mirrors the very heart of God.  There were some extraordinary  teachers last Friday, who were welcomed home by God as they too demonstrated in their last breaths in this world their own "willingness."

Our country will always have need of protectors, despite that some are so foolish and narcissistic that they believe that with the right direction from them, mankind's bent to destruction and violence will be cured.  My stepson took a school field trip his senior year in high school where a scientist who was a presenter told Brian's class that science had identified the chromosomes that cause a person to have the "tendency to steal."  The man stated that eventually a baby could be genetically engineered to be perfect.  I shudder at the thought of  there being those who are pursuing this science.  For the time being, there are still the un-engineered who wake up each day determined to conquer our country, and take away the God ordained liberties we are privileged to know as United States citizens.  During this Christmas Season so many of those in our military will not be home sharing the blessings of family.  They will be separated from all that they love, some of them in extremely dire circumstances, and standing in the gap, protecting this nation.   I wrote and published the following blog post some time back, but I am re-posting this blog because of how the service of those in our military is associated with the gift of God, a life laid down in sacrifice for each of us.  As Jesus "willingly" gave His life, so many of our countrymen have given theirs.  

If you know the family member of a fallen hero, please pass this tribute and acknowledgement on to them,  for "no greater love hath any man than to lay down his life for a friend."  There is one step up from that, and God Himself knows well what it is.  It is watching a son or daughter, mother or father, husband or wife, brother or sister,  give their life for others.  Oh what anguish and pain lies in that sacrifice.  We are the ones for whom these lives have been laid down for.  Those who have made the sacrifice will not be present for the Christmas celebrations of their families, in fact, those celebrations will never be the same for the families of the fallen, always, there will be an empty chair at their celebration tables.  

Then there are the families everywhere whose loved one will be in a war zone on Christmas, mine included.  If you have never had this experience, though I love words, they fail me when I try to explain what the experience is like.  The prevailing thought for me on these days is always, how does the son or daughter of a Soldier, especially the younger of them, deal with the absence of a parent on these occasions?  It is almost unbearable for me, I can't even imagine what it is for the little ones. 

There are also those who have sustained wounds in the battle, some are visible, and some are not.  They too have put it all on the line for you and I.  Many of these heroes can no longer serve, their lives having been altered forever.  The families of those who serve sacrifice everyday as well, and it can be lonely doing so in a country where many people live their daily lives oblivious to the fact that our military are daily encountering our common enemy in battle.  War is an ugly and difficult undertaking, but unavoidable when our enemies make overt aggression against us on our homeland soil, murdering innocent citizens without mercy.  Their agenda has not changed, and if allowed, they will strike again.  What follows are words that Soldiers I have shared them with have found supportive of the very difficult job they must do.  If you know a Soldier, or love a Soldier, take just the few moments it will take to share these words with them.  I believe the response you receive in return will indicate the same appreciation that brings me deep satisfaction in sharing.  Expressing my gratitude with more than just the phrase, "thank you for your service," but instead with deeply felt expressions, seems especially important at this time of the year, so once again, words from my heart for those who serve, and for their families. 

I had an exchange with one of the Warriors I have come to know by way of facebook.  Always these men and women absolutely slay my mind with their deeds and the stand they make.  As you will see, these simple words of recognition of the obvious were appreciated, which underscores for me how important it is that we never miss the opportunity to acknowledge the obvious to each service person we encounter.  The job they do takes so much, and gives little in measurable personal gain.  Their reward,  for them, lies within their souls, and is self sustaining, requiring nothing from the rest of the world.  The acknowledgment from each of us of who they are, what they do, and why they do it,  is more necessary for us to be able to sleep at night than for them to.  What follows is a spell checked version of what I wrote, then the validation that for at least one Warrior, it was words of encouragement, and has paved the way for my fulfilling my own obligations.  Trust me, this Warrior took his first breath "willing," and would go on without a word of backing from anyone, I am the wife of such a man.  I have had the privilege of knowing so many Warriors, and their families, and I am one rich person because of it.  What a blessing I consider it to have encouraged one of them.  So if you know a Soldier, a Warrior from any branch, and you would value the overwhelming sense of humility and a pride that comes from fulfilling your own sacred duty to these heroes, there is a chance that in your passing these words on to them, you can have that feeling.  Here are my words, and then his, which are always expressed with a sense of humor, and for him that must be a tremendously powerful protective device in the war zone where he daily stands "willing."

There are some people who are born with a capacity to lay it all on the line that surpasses bravery.  Any day of the week I can risk my life for one of my grand-children or children, my husband, parents, etc...  There are people who, as their primary occupation, will risk their lives for perfect strangers, people of countries other than their own, and even a wounded enemy,  and not just in one moment of a short lived disaster or accident such as a house fire or car wreck, but they will wake up every day... "willing."  Deliberately they stand between threat and danger, and me and mine, and for the rest of the world as well. On an ongoing basis, and they think of it as "just doing my job," they are "willing." 


Their families are affected by their willingness, but in both positive and negative ways, and because of what their family members witness in the lives of "the willing," they are enriched in ways that only those closest to "the willing" can be.  Their family members share their everyday lives with a living, breathing, genuine hero, and that impacts a person, and it empowers and inspires their loved ones. Because they are willing to do what the majority of people would never commit to, we all have the freedom to achieve the destiny we would select for ourselves... and inch by inch... the rest of the world is being affected by their stand as well.

Daily there is criticism from the uninformed, the miss-informed, and the run of the mill idiots, it just rolls off their backs, and when the aforementioned get themselves in a jam... or the enemy is wounded .... in need of care... being who they are... they are rescued and protected just as wholeheartedly as family.

There cannot be too many words of praise, there cannot be too frequent a mention of their deeds, there cannot be too much made of their loss from this world when one of them willingly makes that ultimate sacrifice. We will be utterly lost if we fail in this obligation, if we fail to be faithful to our own scared duty toward these men and women, and their families. For as we celebrate their lives and their willingness, and openly grieve at their separation from this world, we ensure that more men and women with the same heart will answer the call to be "willing."  There is no currency or budget line item that can purchase a willing heart, and the service of the man or woman who possesses it.  It can only be given.

Buzzy Sørensen
Debra, thank you again. Don't think I've ever seen that so well put of why we do what we do....I was gonna just be my usual smartass & say I do it cause chicks dig the uniform but this really hit home personally & it's one of those passages... that gets printed out, stuffed im my front vest pocket, maybe make a few copies for some buds that need encouragement some days & reread when I need to remind myself why we subject ourselves to the evil that would do us harm....you really need to publish this for everyone to see & ponder. Thanks.
Buzzy
30 minutes ago · LikeUnlike
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Debra LeCompte Actually the chicks do dig the uniform... without a doubt...
4 minutes ago · LikeUnlike
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Debra LeCompte I pray for you, and that bunch you run with every day...
3 minutes ago · Like