Veteran's Day

Today is Veteran’s Day. 

Before I went to bed last night, I sent messages to all of the Veterans I know, thanking them for their service.  Last night was technically Veteran’s Day, because I’m a night owl and find it virtually impossible to go to bed before midnight.  Of course, I sent a message to Phil, and then I sent messages to all of Phil’s buddies who served with him in Iraq.  Their responses made me sad though, because they all said that they rarely get any thanks for what they’ve done. 

Americans don’t seem to grasp what these soldiers actually gave up.  Not only did they give up so much time out of their lives, away from their home and family, but they were also ready and willing to give up everything, including their life, for our country. Many of them have chronic moderate to severe back and/or knee pain from carrying around 125 pounds of equipment for long periods of time.Not only have they sacrificed their physical health, but also their mental and emotional health.  Many of them remain undiagnosed and untreated, but suffer from PTSD.  Many of them remain forever scarred by the things they witnessed while serving our country.


"In war, there are no unwounded soldiers." -Jose Narosky

 Americans like to say that they appreciate our Veterans, but their treatment of them says different.  They like to think they’re patriotic because they post a thank you message on their Facebook status, but they may never understand what these soldiers have really done for our country.   These soldiers gave up so much as part of their duty to this country.  Even non-supporters of the war should be able to appreciate that.  These soldiers did not declare war on these countries, they just did their duty.  I just wish people really understood what it means to be a veteran and would say thank you more often than just on Veteran’s Day.

Now, getting off my soap box…

 I talked to Phil this morning.  He had a rough day and was annoyed by some things over there, so we talked about that for a while.  It made me a little sad and worried, but I’m glad he talks to me about everything.  I told him about the bad dream I had last night about him starting a relationship with a female military member over there.  He said he was sorry it made me sad, but it was just a dream.  He promised it will never happen, which made me feel better.  He had to go after that, but he said he loves me and will talk to me soon.  I love him so much.  Every day that I talk to him is a good day. 

I miss him so much.  One of my friends on Facebook changed her profile picture.  It is of her jumping on and hugging her husband at the airport when he came home for R & R.  I can’t wait for that day we pick Phil up from the airport and I can put my arms around him.  The picture made me want to cry.  My mom told me the other day that it’s ok to cry, that it releases stress.  I try not to cry, though, simply because I’m afraid that once I start crying, I may never stop.  Half my heart is in Afghanistan. L

Today, I don’t have school, but I woke up in a panic this morning because I forgot and I thought I was going to be late. However, I had a nice little wake up call this morning when one of the car alarms in the parking lot decided to go off at 7. It honked and honked for about 15 minutes and finally stopped.  Grrrr... I fell back asleep, and woke up in time to talk to Phil around 9:30. I'm tired, but I’m going to spend the day working on a memorandum assignment for my Criminal Procedure class. We have to read a hundred pages of case materials and then write a memo discussing the issues in the case.  Fun. Tonight, I’ll probably go to the gym and run on the treadmill.  My legs were still too sore yesterday but are better today. 

I hope today is a good day and that I’ll hear from Phil tomorrow.