Monday
29May
Memorial Day Commentary from an Army Wife
Monday, May 29, 2006 at 11:28AM “No one wants any soldier to die, but be proud. The United States is a liberator.”
These are the words of a Catholic priest, Chaplain (Lieutenant Colonel) Augustine, of the African country of Malawi, who returns to Malawi at the end of the week. Fr. Augustine has been receiving Advanced Officer Training here at Ft. Jackson for months and has become a beloved member of our congregation and co-celebrant of the liturgy.
Also at Catholic Mass in the Main Post Chapel were two Sudanese and one Iraqi soldier. Non-citizens, LEGAL aliens, can join the military (what a great way to earn citizenship!) After Mass, my husband, SFC Proctor and I talked to Anwar, the Iraqi Catholic soldier. The image of a young Iraqi Catholic man in a US Army uniform was surreal. Anwar, a 37 year old Iraqi who fought as a soldier under Saddam in the 1st Gulf War of 1991, is now endeavoring to become a US Soldier. He told us that during the Gulf War, many Iraqi soldiers refused to fight for Saddam and defected to other countries, abandoned their posts or surrendered to the US. After Basic Training he will study to become a linguist, arguably putting him in a valuable and ironic position to be deployed to Iraq to do his part in the war on terror… but this time as an US soldier. Anwar was pleased to learn of SFC Proctor’s familiarity with the Al Rashid district of Baghdad, where Anwar grew up and and the 82nd Airborne Division served from May 2003-February 2004. Anwar asked if we knew a Fr. Bashar of Saints Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Baghdad, to which the answer was, “Of course!”
Cindy Sheehan once said:
“America has been killing people on this continent since it was started. This country is not worth dying for…”
Thank God not everyone feels that way. Fr. Augustine said with a heavy Malawian accent in his farewell remarks to the congregation:
“Thank you. Thank you for your faith. Thank you for your love. Thank you for bringing freedom to countries in need of liberation. You are not oppressors. America is a liberator. No one wants any soldier to die, but be proud. Americans freely join the military to bring liberation to other countries. The world needs America. The United States is a liberator.”
Second Lieutenant Jack Lundberg was killed two weeks after D-Day, at the end of World War II. He wrote his Mom and Dad a letter to be opened in the event he did not come home. He wrote:
“I am sorry to add to your grief … but we of the United States have something to fight for — never more fully have I realized that. The United States of America is worth the sacrifice.”
First Lieutenant Mark Dooley was killed by a terrorist bomb last September in the Iraqi city of Ramadi. Before he left for his tour, he gave his parents a last letter, just in case. He wrote:
“Remember that my leaving was in the service of something that we loved, and be proud. The best way to pay respect is to value why a sacrifice was made.”
THANK YOU. THANK YOU to all the soldiers who have served in the United States military who gave their life in defense of America or the needy abroad. SALUTE.NOTE WORTHY:
- President Bush’s 2006 Memorial Day Speech
- Anthony, Catholic Paratrooper of Jumping Without a Chute, gave this keynote speech at the Franklin, NJ Township Memorial Day Commemoration.
WHAT OTHER BLOGGER ARE SAYING:
Michelle Malkin Expose the Left Instapundit Catholic Fire AubreyJ Sister Toldjah Hooahwife & Friends Jo’s Cafe’ Ms. Underestimated Flopping Aces Black Five
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Response: Best of the BlogosphereCheck out Amy Proctor's post Memorial Day Commentary from an Army Wife -
Response: Memorial Day 2006Memorial Day used to be a national day of mourning. A day of remembrance. Now it?s a day of Barbeques, heading to the beach and shopping bargains. Some don?t even know what this day means....
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Response: Tomb Of the Unknown Soldier (VIDEO)To all the men and women who have served this country, in whatever capacity, I salute you. We owe you an eternal debt of gratitude. Not even hurricane Isabel could stop these men from keeping the vigil....
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Response: Some Gave All . . .
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Response: Notable Memorials.I've read some terrific Memorial Day posts on various blogs, and would just would like to share them with you. Some might consider this "too late", since it's after the holiday, you know, but I feel it's never to late to respect our troops. And I felt selfish keeping these wonderful posts to myself. They blow my poor posts out of the water
Reader Comments (12)
AubreyJ.........
God bless you, your husband, and your family.
Regards...
Max
Thanks for the link and for the kind words. It was truly humbling to stand before so many vets and share my words.
May all of our precious military personnel receive the thanks and gratitude of the people they are keeping safe and free.
Thanks, Amy. I kept the newspaper with many of the statistics you posted.
Isn't it interesting the humilitary resulting from appreciating the troops? When a person has any real exposure to what these men do for the world and our country it is truly awe-inspiring.
Compare that with the dirty, polluted feel you get from a Cindy Sheehan, a John Kerry or any anti-war group.
Chief, I'm glad someone gets something out of the stats I post. Truly amazing were the articles in the Stars and Stripes during WWII. History is always being rewritten, which is a shame, and why peoplel who have 1st hand experience of an event need to record it. They do the rest of us a favor.
except God -- "The wages of sin are death"
St. Paul said that, not God. Even if not, it was man who brought death into the world, not God.
By the way, what anonymizer do you use? I'm looking for a good one myself.