WHY ME?
It
seems to be human nature that, in times where things are going against you, you
ask yourself, “Why me?” There have been
times in my life, both as a child and as an adult, when I asked that question. When my father would hear that from me he
had a standard answer and it was “Why not you?” He thought that no one was that special that
they could dodge the various less-than-good things that came along. Presidents,
leaders of the military,
politicians, celebrities of all sorts have encountered an event at some point
in their life where they asked that question.
We,
the American people, have asked that question as a nation, and as over 300
million individuals. Situations arise
that may aggravate you, might make you look inside yourself, or make you question
whether or not you should be doing, or not doing, what the situation
demands. Why me? A veteran, lying in a hospital bed
somewhere, realizing that for whatever has taken place, his or her life will
never be the same, asks that question.
Perhaps the question arises as he or she is leading a charge to the
enemy, or their aircraft or ship has been hit and they suffered wounds. Veterans are almost traditional in their
reluctance to discuss things they’ve been forced to do in order to survive, and
at that point they ask themselves, “Why me?”.
So…why
not you? Some of us Americans think
that because we ARE Americans we should be exempt from taking part in world
affairs. Then there are others that
would say if not me, who…and if not now, when? You, and you alone, are truly responsible for
your actions. Oh sure, you can say that
you’re just following orders, or that you had peer pressure to do whatever it
was that you did…but in the end, you must ask yourself “Why me?”. You’re not chosen out of millions to be a
fall guy. You haven’t been picked out
to be a sucker. No one has elected you
to be the patsy.
For
many years now, our armed forces have been all-volunteer so even the threat of
the draft is not there. No one has had
their number picked out of a big bowl, and realized that they may have to go
fight a war…maybe lose a limb or two, or even their life. That’s a decision you make all on your
own. That’s a decision that places you
in the ranks of heroes. That’s a
decision that answers the question of “Why me?”, and you know the answer…”Why
not you?”
“I
am super proud of being an American, but we fail our veterans every day.”
----Laurie Halse Anderson. I don’t know who that lady is, but that’s a
good thought, and here’s another one…”As young West Point
cadets, our motto was 'duty, honor, country.' But it was in the field, from the
rice paddies of Southeast Asia to the sands of the Middle
East, that I learned that motto's fullest meaning. There I saw
gallant young Americans of every race, creed and background fight, and
sometimes die, for 'duty, honor, and their country.'”----Norman Schwarzkopf and
my personal favorite…“A Veteran Is Someone Who, at one point, wrote a blank
check made payable to ‘The United States of America’ for an amount of ‘up to
and including their life.’ That is Honor, and there are way too many people in
this country who no longer understand it.”
To the veterans who have asked “Why me?”, I think you know the
answer…because it was the right thing to do.
Some gave all…all gave some. Thank you for your service.
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