I'm married to a veteran. I feel very honored to live with a veteran. Back in the day it probably seemed as though every man you met was a veteran. So many women's husbands going off to war. So many boys being enlisted, so many families separated by the armed forces and the need for soldiers. When my husband signed up for the Army, I imagine there were quite a few from our small town, but I don't think the numbers are anywhere near what they were back in the day. It seems rare that I meet another man of my husbands age who says he is also a veteran. So for me, my husband seems special in the world I'm surrounded by.
Moving toward our 16th year together I'm sure I have heard every story that he likes to tell, dozens of times. His memory is strong when it comes to those years. His friendships are strong in his memory too. I could name all the special people he bunked with, parachuted from planes with, hunkered down with in the desert during his time in Iraq. Some we still see, and he considers them family, and so do I. To him, they are family. You see, they were experiencing things that were stressful, difficult, tiring, exhausting, and life threatening, together. While family is home watching the television trying to keep up with what is happening around the globe, these men are relying on each other for everything, including the feelings of family.
Stories that have left me in disbelief, are the stories of my husband down inside a hole in the ground, covered in a suit that protected him from chemical threat, with gas mask covering his head, for hours. Stuffed into bunkers with so many men, pushing into one another at over 100 degree temperatures. He told me men would pass out from the heat, but because they were so stuffed together, the pressure of the men would hold the soldier up and keep him standing.
When he describes how the sky lit up from military combat happening in the distance, how you never knew what was in store for you from one moment to the next. You see, he was there. I wasn't. So I really can't appreciate what he saw, or how he felt, or the conditions he was living in but I can imagine it.
He tells me funny stories too. Things that help me to understand how friendships were created. My husband figured out how the superiors where taking hot showers in the desert. Before copying their invention, he partook in a hot shower until the hot ran out. How wonderful it felt to have a hot shower. Up to that point, they had been cold, so taking this invention back to his camp, for the men who he served with, was a real hit, and a inside secret!
But one that makes me chuckle, revolves around him telling me about the sirens going off that indicated All men needed to suit up, to protect against chemical weapons being used. This suit as I mentioned above, covered their body, their head and included a gas mask. Over time, after several false alarms, it became less of a legitimate threat. So my husband said when these sirens went off, some of his friends would literally kick back and light a cigarette. Then they'd look around at each other with a roll of the eyes and an approach of complete relaxation as though to say, "Yeah, right." No suits were being donned. Of course if they had gotten caught by a superior not in their protective gear, they would have gotten their butts chewed out. These were not comical times.
My husband was a paratrooper out of Fort Bragg. He signed up for the military without telling his folks, and when he came home and told his father, his father said, "You didn't sign anything did you?" Maybe he was frightened to have his son enlist during such unsettled times. My husband said, "Yes. I signed. I'm leaving in a few months." It takes a pretty strong willed person in my mind to sign up. It isn't as though your first few months of military life is easy. From the sounds of it, it sucks. You have basic training, where you're treated like crap. Of course it's crap with a purpose. They tear you down so they can build you up to be super human. Mind, body, soul. You go in one way, you come out another and hopefully, God willing, you come out a whole person. Not injured, not mentally destroyed, not anxiety ridden. I believe these factors may reside in all veterans, but some more than others. Some horrifically felt and others slight. From what my husband has shared, I've come to the conclusion that the military teaches you to trust their method, trust one another, give you feelings of strength and eventually lift you up.
Not all come out saying it was a success, or that they would do it again if they could go back. It's probably a good thing that in my husband's case, he can't go back and decide all over again because he might choose differently. But the man my husband is, is a man who has military flowing in his blood. It's awesome. It makes him who he is. It left a positive impression upon him. He is a hard worker. He is never late to anything, his punctuality is impeccable. His statue and how he holds himself is that of a confidant strong man. He is a leader and organizer over people, and anyone who goes on his big fishing trip every year can attest to that. He is respected. He is gentle, he has a huge heart, and he cares deeply for others. He took with him the good from the military, the wisdom from the negatives, and a heart full of memories that he wouldn't trade for the world.
As I close, today is another Veteran's Day. A special day to so many and for so many. It means someone you know or someone you love has served in the military. Possibly served away from home, possibly died serving. It means you know someone who signed up to protect our country, fight for it with other men who stood shoulder to shoulder. It means you are blessed to know them, to have them in your life or embraced within your heart and family history. It is a day to lift those in military service up, up, up.
When my husband loaded a 747 to fly out from his year spent in Iraq, the plane couldn't have been more packed with military men. As the plane took to the runway and began its taxi, the pilot came over the loud speaker and said, "Thank you for your service." He then played, "I'm Proud to be an American!" over the loud speaker, as the wheels lifted off the tarmac. My husband said they cheered, they let out a sigh of relief because you weren't out of there until those wheels were up! They ALL sang that song as a united front. They cried, they thanked God for getting them out of there, for getting them headed towards home. What a amazing feeling they all must have felt. That is what the military brought to him, feelings of pride! Thank you Veteran's and those serving our country now, we are forever indebted. Love you honey. Happy Veteran's Day.
My heart belongs to a Veteran.
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