Earl The Average American; The Veteran
I met an older gentleman named Earl a few years back. We were both waiting on connecting flights in Atlanta and he seemed like a nice enough fellow to strike up a conversation with. Although I wasn't traveling in uniform, he quickly pegged me as a service-member (we sorta stick out like sore thumbs at airports even out of uniform). He asked what service I was in and I told him the Army. He asked me what I did and a series of other questions, the kinds of questions only one soldier asks another. The kind of things that the average person doesn't know about. The daily minutia, habits, and routines many of us in uniform share.
Knowing he was probably a Vietnam or Korea era veteran, I asked him about his service. He was humble about it. What he did share were names of buddies from long ago. Stories of getting into trouble and laughing with his friends, of the ole Sarge whipping them into shape, and how cold it was on those hills just outside of Seoul. He talked about his sweetheart back in Cleveland back in the winter of 1951, waiting for him to come home from the war so they could get married. He reminisced about the sweet smell of the letters he'd get from her which had been written and sent months earlier and taken that long to get to him on the battlefield.
Other than saying they were a worthy opponent, he didn't say much about the enemy. He didn't talk about how little he made as a young enlisted guy or how unfair it was that some of his buddies got to go off to college and he got stuck going off to war. It seemed to me, that life had quietly swept away the pain, the negativity, the hurt. Time had left memories of the only things that really ever matter in the end to a veteran; those guys and girls who served to your right and to your left, and the family and friends you came home to.
I had been preoccupied that day with stupid reports I was late in submitting. I had a little bit of an attitude about whatever my boss had me working on cause of course, I knew better than him. I was mad at my wife for giving me so much static about traveling too much. I had all kinds of chips on my shoulder cause life was bogging me down, and damn it, I didn't get paid enough for all this crap. That is all before I met Earl.
He reminded me how lucky I was to serve my country. How right a decision I had made the day I stumbled into the recruiter's office a terrified, lost kid; looking for a fair shot at "life." What an amazing life it has been.
Today, I am no longer a negative person. I am so thankful for the family which has stuck by me through every stupid thing I have ever done; steadfastly waiting for their soldier to come home. I am reminded how truly honored I've been to have served with so many of my friends, many of whom are FB friends; some still in uniform serving along-side me, others having moved on. Today, as many of them have posted old photos of themselves in uniform from years gone by in honor of Veterans day, I salute them all. I salute their families who too many times bare the greatest burden and sacrifice the most. And I especially want to salute Earl wherever he might be today. Private First Class Earl Smith, thank you for your service to our nation. You are a true hero and represent the very best of what it means to be an American.
Knowing he was probably a Vietnam or Korea era veteran, I asked him about his service. He was humble about it. What he did share were names of buddies from long ago. Stories of getting into trouble and laughing with his friends, of the ole Sarge whipping them into shape, and how cold it was on those hills just outside of Seoul. He talked about his sweetheart back in Cleveland back in the winter of 1951, waiting for him to come home from the war so they could get married. He reminisced about the sweet smell of the letters he'd get from her which had been written and sent months earlier and taken that long to get to him on the battlefield.
Other than saying they were a worthy opponent, he didn't say much about the enemy. He didn't talk about how little he made as a young enlisted guy or how unfair it was that some of his buddies got to go off to college and he got stuck going off to war. It seemed to me, that life had quietly swept away the pain, the negativity, the hurt. Time had left memories of the only things that really ever matter in the end to a veteran; those guys and girls who served to your right and to your left, and the family and friends you came home to.
I had been preoccupied that day with stupid reports I was late in submitting. I had a little bit of an attitude about whatever my boss had me working on cause of course, I knew better than him. I was mad at my wife for giving me so much static about traveling too much. I had all kinds of chips on my shoulder cause life was bogging me down, and damn it, I didn't get paid enough for all this crap. That is all before I met Earl.
He reminded me how lucky I was to serve my country. How right a decision I had made the day I stumbled into the recruiter's office a terrified, lost kid; looking for a fair shot at "life." What an amazing life it has been.
Today, I am no longer a negative person. I am so thankful for the family which has stuck by me through every stupid thing I have ever done; steadfastly waiting for their soldier to come home. I am reminded how truly honored I've been to have served with so many of my friends, many of whom are FB friends; some still in uniform serving along-side me, others having moved on. Today, as many of them have posted old photos of themselves in uniform from years gone by in honor of Veterans day, I salute them all. I salute their families who too many times bare the greatest burden and sacrifice the most. And I especially want to salute Earl wherever he might be today. Private First Class Earl Smith, thank you for your service to our nation. You are a true hero and represent the very best of what it means to be an American.
Comments
Post a Comment