Today is Armed Forces Day. Many Americans will go onto social media and say thank you to all our men and women who are, or have served in our nation's armed forces. I'm sure that for many of those people, their thanks will be sincere. But I also know that the vast majority of them have no idea what is really sacrificed on their behalf.
The truth is that our citizenry's current ignorance to the realities of the war fighting business is a testament to the amazing success of our nation's fighting force. In other parts of the world were bombings and house to house street fights are a daily happening, the United States has the luxury of being shocked whenever a couple of nutcases decide so go on a rampage. The country felt a collective punch to the gut after the Boston Marathon bombing. But in places like Iraq, Syria or just about anywhere in Africa, that would barely have warranted a front page mention. We are safer in America than just about anywhere in the world. And that didn't just happen. Our military has kept this kind of evil out of the sights, and out of the minds, of most of the American populous. But that doesn't mean it isn't there. Our guys confront it every day so that we may continue to trick ourselves into believing it can never touch us. But that belief comes at a cost. And that cost never fails to get paid. In every state in our union, there are national cemeteries. Some are so large that when you're there, you can't see past the headstones. There are men and women buried there from every conflict this nation has every engaged in. And I invite anyone to not feel something when you see the ages of so many of our heroes when they died. There are also almost 130,00 Americans buried overseas. The last resting places of our boys who never had a chance to come home. For those older veterans who did come home, the "lucky ones", the pain they feel as the years go by, if anything, gets stronger. When they were nineteen and lost their buddies, the loss was a personal one. But the older they get, they realize more and more just how much their friends gave up. Every milestone in their lives brings with it the reminder of just how much their friends never got to have.
For our younger veterans the situation, if possible, if even worse. They come home to the realization that they have nothing in common with most of their own generation. They struggle to have things to talk about when they try to get jobs in the civilian world, and going back to school often brings bitterness and real anger. Seeing people your own age who have never lived a single day for others, but who willing tell anyone who will listen all about how the world "really is", is nauseatingly and infuriating. But they are nothing compared to the professors. Some guy shoving his world view done their troat. Making them out as evil murderers. Some just can't stand it, so they drop out. Being there is just too hard. And who can blame them?
It may come as no surprise that many of them, then chose to go into jobs in emergency response. Police, Fire Fighters, or EMT/Paramedics. They just can't help it. They are good people who feel a real need to help others. The comradery they get in these fields is also the same as when they were in the military. They are all on the same team, working together and looking out for each other. Sadly, however in these jobs (or callings really) our vets are met with an almost unending stream of ungratefulness, hatred and real danger. The risks they take aren't understood or, in some cases even cared about, by the vast majority of the population. They are seen as too fast to tackle or pull their guns. But these guys know how fast a situation can go from just fine to you or your partner are dead. Moments. Mere moments. They know it because they have lived it. So is it really any wonder that they chose to be better safe than sorry? Not really. They leave their homes and families and throw themselves headfirst into the worst situations imaginable, every day. Day after day. For the people they are helping, it's the worst day of their lives. But the responders have already been to four or five situations just like it in that day alone. The stress they are under in unimaginable for most people.
A lot of our vets, regardless of age or conflict are also suffering from the invisible injuries of war. Post Traumatic Stress is not a disorder as so many people believe, but a real injury. An injury that only happened because of their selfless willingness to do what only 1% of our population is willing to do. They should be heralded as heroes and given every help at healing that they need. Yet so many feel isolated and stigmatized for their symptoms. Loud noises and large crowds can cause them to panic. The fear they feel is compounded by the judgment and misunderstanding by many of the people around them. They feel they should be able to handle it and that it is a mark of weakness that they can't. As a result, many retreat into themselves and never ask for the help they need. This needs to stop. They should be met with nothing but our grateful willingness to help. Their wounds were incurred in our service and are nothing to be ashamed of.
Any gratitude for our current or former veterans is not complete without a mention of the military family. The support given to our service members by their families is often overlooked, but their sacrifices are just as life changing. Spouses and children deal with separation, fear, and loss. They carry the burden of helping to support their loved ones through the emotional and sometimes physical wounds they come home with. They deal daily with the costs of service. For them, it is a never ending battle.
So what's the point? The point is that if you are a beneficiary of our nation's veterans or first responders ( that's all of you ), you have an obligation to educate yourselves on the struggles they go through, and real sacrifices they give for you. And don't just say thank you on holidays. Say it everyday. They've earned it! And believe it or not, a simple and sincere thank you is all they ever want. Pretty amazing, right?
VOH
P.S. If you are suffering from a PTS injury, please seek help. The invictusgamesfoundation.org is a great place to start, especially if you like sports. And the bushcenter.org (under resources, programs and issues, then military service initiative )
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