Out For A Walk

I am going for a walk in a few hours.  I will be holding the American Flag.  My company is honoring Veterans, and handing out coupons. 

Somehow, most places, private and commercial, have gone from Halloween to Christmas, Thanksgiving is relegated to a stuffing special on aisle nine.  You are right, the turkey is still in the Oval office, but I digress.

Why get up at O dark thirty to do this?  Most folks will take the long weekend to shop or relax.  Nothing wrong with that, Americans work very hard.  But, here's the thing, on this one day we need to stop and remember the sacrifices of those called to serve, forced to chose between family and duty. 

I brought a few pictures of the Veterans in my family to work.  A strange thing happened.  Folks stopped to ask, "what is that."  I told them.  They in turn told me great stories about a grandfather who served in the Philippines in WWII.  He still had his "the war is over letter."  He got it two weeks late. 

I have heard so many wonderful, touching and funny stories about their families.  Difficult decisions, hard times, great joys, and stories they had not thought about for a long time.  Standing amid the small plastic Christmas trees and sparsely placed harvest decorations, they remembered.

It took just a few moments, then we moved on with our day.  Take a few moments to remember...