Memorial Day

Today is Memorial Day; a day that we should all take a few moments to think of, be thankful for, and to remember the service men and women that have served our nation during wars and times of peace. My grandfather was a part of that greatest generation that liberated Europe, my father was one of the volunteers to serve in the Pacific during the Vietnam conflict, and I completed two tours in the Persian Gulf during my 5 yrs in the ARMY. I am proud to say that I was a part of the uniformed services, and an quick to say that in many ways it played a great part in making me the man I am today. Far too often we hear about bad things that have happened, or our attentions are drawn to misfortunes or mistakes in our conflicts abroad. I would submit that regardless of our different opinions with regard to policy or administration, the soldier is not to be anything but thanked. Don't let us forget that these men and women are volunteers. They have put their lives up to protect our way of life. A way of life that is all too often taken for granted. I thank you all, Army Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard and National Guard for your service and your time. I remember and honor the fallen and thank them for theirs, the greatest, sacrifice. I am also thankful for those that wait for these men and women, the wives and husbands that keep the homes and wait with anxious children; without their support the soldiers job would be infinitely harder.

Thank you and God bless you.
P~

Positive outlook.

I was told by an old friend of mine recently with reference to politics that he wants "ANYONE but Bush!" in '08. This got me thinking that besides the obvious fact that it will be by default anyone but Bush, based solely on term limits (which is a topic for a whole other conversation), but that this was an incredibly pessimistic way of looking at our future. Let me get to the root of this phrase as I see it.
To me, saying "Anyone but Bush" is making far too simple a requirement of anyone hopeing to be the Commander and Chief of our great country. Our country was founded and rooted in hope, and possibilities. Our forefathers knew what was possible if men were left to be free to decide, and if they had hope for a better future for themselves and their families. To not look for a candidate, regardless one's political leaning, that offers hope and can outline the possibilities as they see them; to only look for someone that is the antithesis of the current administration, can only lead to disappointment. How hard is it to imagine a polititian that knows people are only looking for "Anyone but..." to tell you exactly what you are telling him you want to hear. They wouldn't be required to be a thinker, or to have any plan for the future, only to aspouse a disagreement with the current. If the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence, do you just keep jumping the fence, or do you take a little time to find a good gardener to green up the side your on? Or better yet, get your hands dirty and work to green it up yourself!
I have made a decision to try my hardest to focus on the positive in this life. I get frustrated by things, and at times just plain hate the status quo. But I think one is always better served by looking for a positive solution than by complaining about the problem.
That's my opinion for what it's worth.
P~

Inspiring

Tonight I had a good friend of mine call unexpectedly and invite me to a lecture being given by David McCullough. This friend of mine obviously gets me as much as I thought he did, one of the few that do.
The speaker is not someone that I am familiar with, but was speaking primarily on American History. He is a pulitzer prize winning author and historian and well worth the time to listen to.
He brought up a lot of things that really made sense to me. Talking about our founding fathers and the struggles that they went through to get us to the point where we are now really made me reflect. We have things so easy for us now that we take for granted all of the sacrifices that have been made for us. Not just by our founding fathers, but by others in our lives. My own father grew up very modestly. My Grandfather had only the basic education, but knew the keys to success and he gifted them to his children. My dad worked hard, continued his education and set goals for himself. He learned to love and to share through fights and truces with his six siblings. His sacrifice, and his lessons allowed my life to be substantially easier that his. I appreciate this enormously. However, as illustrated by poor choices early in my adult life I failed to receive the lessons that he had. This was not for any lack of trying on my dads part. God knows we still tease him about the lectures. I believe the lack of sacrifice had not given me the opportunity to build the desire to push farther. I'm lucky to have weathered my trials later in life and come out for the better.
The lecture tonight brought me to think about our nation and its history of advancement. Our founders suffered tyrants and won their freedom, their children fought with each other and with others to protect our freedoms. They lived through famine, disease and economic depression. Today we've reaped the benefit of our fathers lessons and hard work. Our lives are simple and clean. I fear sometimes that we are doomed to make similar mistakes as a country that I made as a young man. I'll continue to try to make myself better, and give my children a sense of where they come from. It is our duty to our nation and it's future to make sure that we have given a sense of perspective and duty to our children. They will need it for their future. If they forget, or worse yet never learn about the sacrifices before this time, they are destined to learn them the hard way.

That's all for tonight.
P~