True American Hero

We all know one. Quiet, unassuming and going about their lives without fanfare.

My father was one of those. He gave 42 years of his life to the military without needing acknowledgement for what he did. He was like John Wayne in a cowboy movie. Came in, did the job and left without people knowing who he was except the ones that he touched. That is the epitome of a true American Hero.

I am one of the luckier ones and grew up knowing so many of them. My dad's military buddies who did what he did and went about their daily lives with their families and friends. My friends' fathers who did the same while we grew up in military installations, thinking that this is a normal life. How little we knew or appreciated that we lived with that Hero every day. He was just daddy.

When my dad passed in 2005, I had to go through all his paperwork for my mom and I found a letter to him, presenting him with a Bronze Star. He never mentioned he had gotten one. In fact, he never requested for it, which you have to do. That was my dad. He didn't need the accolade or the acclamation for doing his job; he just did it and did it well. He did it for the love for and from his wife and his three girls.

When he retired from the military after 20 years, it was without a huge party and decoration from the military. He did what he had to do and went about finding a civil service job and continued his work with the military. When he retired from that, my mom threw him a elegant and quiet party at my friend's winery. It was just family and close friends; mostly his military buddies and wives.

Why do I bring all this up? Because we all meet and know those zealots who served in the military for a very short time yet push that fact into people's faces as if they are owed some acknowledgement or attention. It shows their immaturity and lack of class, in my humble opinion. It shows that what they did in the military was just a stepping stone to get the attention as a Veteran and use it to their full advantage, whether they deserve it or not. Obviously, they are the ones that lack the strength or courage to continue as they didn't re-enlist. To me, it mars what the quiet brave men and women did and do for our country, day in and day out.

Don't tell me how to be a Patriot in this country. Don't throw our flag into my face as if I don't know what it means. Hell, my birthday is in the same week as the Fourth of July so I know what it means, every year! I was born into it, grew up with it and lived it my whole life. It is with quiet admiration that I show the military personnel my gratitude. When I thank them, I don't do it in public and make a scene but in private to let them know that how much I appreciate what they do and thank them for being who they are. I listen to their story so that I can learn something more.

I don't wear shirts to show that I support an organization but I donate or volunteer to it. I don't spout words of injustice to people to create attention or fear. I just do my part, if I can, to make a change.

In celebration for the upcoming Memorial Day, my heart and prayers go out to those who lost a loved one during their tenure in the military and to those who passed after serving their whole lives. Love and light.