I talked to a man today

Facebook Post

Craig Dew

March 16 at 5:37 AM

I talked with a man today, an 80+ year old man. I asked him if there was anything, I can get him while this Coronavirus scare was gripping America.

He simply smiled, looked away and said:

"Let me tell you what I need! I need to believe, at some point, this country my generation fought for... I need to believe this nation we handed safely to our children and their children...

I need to know this generation will quit being a bunch of sissies...that they respect what they've been given...that they've earned what others sacrificed for."

I wasn't sure where the conversation was going or if it was going anywhere at all. So, I sat there, quietly observing.

"You know, I was a little boy during WWII. Those were scary days. We didn't know if we were going to be speaking English, German or Japanese at the end of the war. There was no certainty, no guarantees like Americans enjoy today.

And no home went without sacrifice or loss. Every house, up and down every street, had someone in harm's way. Maybe their Daddy was a soldier, maybe their son was a sailor, maybe it was an uncle. Sometimes it was the whole damn family...fathers, sons, uncles...

Having someone, you love, sent off to war...it wasn't less frightening than it is today. It was scary as Hell. If anything, it was more frightening. We didn't have battle front news. We didn't have email or cellphones. You sent them away and you hoped...you prayed. You may not hear from them for months, if ever. Sometimes a mother was getting her son's letters the same day Dad was comforting her over their child's death.

And we sacrificed. You couldn't buy things. Everything was rationed. You were only allowed so much milk per month, only so much bread, toilet paper. EVERYTHING was restricted for the war effort. And what you weren't using, what you didn't need, things you threw away, they were saved and sorted for the war effort. My generation was the original recycling movement in America.

And we had viruses back then...serious viruses. Things like polio, measles, and such. It was nothing to walk to school and pass a house or two that was quarantined. We didn't shut down our schools. We didn't shut down our cities. We carried on, without masks, without hand sanitizer. And do you know what? We persevered. We overcame. We didn't attack our President, we came together. We rallied around the flag for the war. Thick or thin, we were in it to win. And we would lose more boys in an hour of combat than we lose in entire wars today."

He slowly looked away again. Maybe I saw a small tear in the corner of his eye. Then he continued:

"Today's kids don't know sacrifice. They think a sacrifice is not having coverage on their phone while they freely drive across the country. Today's kids are selfish and spoiled. In my generation, we looked out for our elders. We helped out with single moms who's husbands were either at war or dead from war. Today's kids rush the store, buying everything they can...no concern for anyone but themselves. It's shameful the way Americans behave these days. None of them deserve the sacrifices their granddads made.

So, no I don't need anything. I appreciate your offer but, I know I've been through worse things than this virus. But maybe I should be asking you, what can I do to help you? Do you have enough pop to get through this, enough steak? Will you be able to survive with 113 channels on your tv?"

I smiled, fighting back a tear of my own...now humbled by a man in his 80's. All I could do was thank him for the history lesson, leave my number for emergency and leave with my ego firmly tucked in my rear.

I talked to a man today. A real man. An American man from an era long gone and forgotten. We will never understand the sacrifices. We will never fully earn their sacrifices. But we should work harder to learn about them … learn from them...to respect them.

When a Soldier Comes Home …

By Terry Orr

(Thank you Mary for forwarding this email.)

When a soldier comes home, he finds it hard ...

......to listen to his son whine about being bored.     

....to keep a straight face when people complain about potholes.    

...to be tolerant of people who complain about the hassle of getting ready for work.    

...to be understanding when a co-worker complains about a bad night's sleep.    

..to be silent when people pray to God for a new car.  

....to control his panic when his wife tells him he needs to drive slower.     

..to be compassionate when a businessman expresses a fear of flying.    

....to keep from laughing when anxious parents say they're afraid to send their kids off to summer camp.  

....to keep from ridiculing someone who complains about hot weather.  

....to control his frustration when a colleague gripes about his coffee being cold. 

....to remain calm when his daughter complains about having to walk the dog.    

.....to be civil to people who complain about their jobs. 

.....to just walk away when someone says they only get two weeks of vacation a year.  

....to be forgiving when someone says how hard it is to have a new baby in the house. 

The only thing harder than being a Soldier. 

...Is Loving one.

I was asked to pass this on and I will gladly do so!! Will you???

No one has been able to explain to me why young men and women serve in the U.S. Military for 20 years, risking their lives protecting freedom, and only get 50% of their pay on retirement. While Politicians hold their political positions, in the safe confines of the capital, protected by these same men and women, and receive full-pay retirement after serving one term. It just does not make any sense. 

If each person who receives this will forward it on to 20 people, in three days, most people in The United States of America will have the message. This is one proposal that really should be passed around.

Proposed 28th Amendment to the United States Constitution:

"Congress shall make no law that applies to the citizens of the United States that does not apply equally to the Senators and/or Representatives; and, Congress shall make no law that applies to the Senators and/or Representatives that does not apply equally to the citizens of the United States." 

  

"If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice," and these brave soldiers have given you that right!!

God bless our men and women who proudly serve and have served, their families for supporting them and a grateful nation and world for all you have and continue to do.