Thank A Veteran

The Great War, the first modern war fought in human history, ended on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 1918. Ove twenty million lives were lost over the four years of dire, inhumane warfare. Every major nation in the world was affected by this war, and when peace was finally signed, the moment was so important that it became a global holiday. Europe calls it Armistice Day, Canada celebrates Remembrance Day, and the United States remembers Veterans Day. Given that the war took place over a century ago, its impact and importance gets reduced with each passing year, as accounts of those terrible years begin to pass into modern legend.

As a child growing up in a small town, I never expected, nor wanted, to join any branch of the military. Watching the end of the Cold War and the beginning of the Middle East troubles with Desert Storm, I felt that joining the military would be a waste of my time. I didn’t want to fight, especially if it was something I couldn’t, or wouldn’t, believe in. I wanted to go to college and be a physicist.

Alas, by the summer of 1997, things in my life had changed to the point where I was considering military service. I was 19 going on 20, and there was an opportunity, in the US Navy, for me to get into nuclear power generation. So, I did it. And on November 10th, it will be 24 years since I left for Great Lakes, Illinois, and boot camp. I still didn’t believe fully in the purpose of the military, I was there for my own benefit. But it wasn’t long until I began to understand it. And it would be another three and a half years before the full force of military service would embed itself in my psyche.

When I speak of my service to the younger kids who may have interest, I tell them that they must be prepared for their life to change on a fundamental level, and that they need to be 150% committed. Despite my ability to be fully committed myself in the first couple of years, I can credit my work ethic for making up for it. Of course, 9/11 was the game-changer. You can read my personal account of that tragic day here: https://vocal.media/serve/remembering-9-11-dfpbqh02kc. That event shined light on the purpose of my ship, and my place within it. It opened my eyes to how crucial my position was, whether it was in my division, my department, my ship, and in the Navy itself. The epiphany allowed me to understand what it meant to be a veteran, what it meant to sacrifice, what it meant to stand for something greater than myself.

The men and women of the armed forces, no matter which nation they may hale from, made an honorable and terrible decision when they volunteered. For me, I was lucky that my mortality hinged on whether or not a crucial piece of equipment failed catastrophically in the propulsion plant. My role was to allow heroes to be heroes. For those who face down the front lines, they have a bravery that is second-to-none. And it’s not just for the fact that they are able to face death, but that they are ready to kill the enemy.

Think about it, we hear rhetoric day in and day out from those with false bravado about how they’d kill whatever perceived enemy they may have. But what does it truly take to take a life? What are the residual effects of such actions on the individual? I’ll tell you what it is… Shellshock, battle fatigue, post-traumatic stress. These men and women have volunteered to possibly suffer from these conditions. In the moment, they faced the enemy, they faced those that were out to kill them for political purposes. Those enemies, no doubt, had also volunteered. No combatant is free from war trauma. It is the leadership of the nations that is to blame when war breaks out, and the tools of that war, the soldiers, are the ones that pay the price.

To be on the right side of history, though, is what is remembered. And in the 103 years since the close of the First World War, those that have volunteered to pay the ultimate sacrifice in the hopes of fighting for the right side of history are to be celebrated. Those that have come home alive from the battles overseas, away from their families, deserve recognition. We must thank them for turning their lives upside down, whether for four years or twenty-four years, and allowing the everyday citizen to live their lives in safety and piece of mind.

I spent nearly ten years in the United States Navy, never getting closer than one hundred miles offshore from where combat operations were taking place. I was, for the most part, safe and secure aboard my ship. I tip my hat to those who were on the front lines. But I tip my hat to all veterans, of any country, who chose to fight for what they felt was right. For the warfighters aren’t always aligned with those who commanded them to fight, but they did their duty for their nation and are to be respected for it.

On this Armistice Day, I ask all of you to thank a veteran in your nation, should they cross your path, and honor them for their choice.