Thank You

Today is the day that we celebrate the service of those who have been a part of our nation's armed services: Veteran's Day.  There is an awful lot of baggage that comes with our country's military activity over the past 50 years or so, but I have been and I remain thankful for the individuals who serve and for the system that trains and equips them.  Our armed forces are truly remarkable on many levels, and regularly engage in work that is absolutely beneficial and often humanitarian in some of the most difficult places in the world.
As someone who has very little martial inclination, I especially appreciate the fact that there are men and women, fellow Americans, who are willing and able to do the sorts of things that are necessary for peace and security in an unstable world.  Because I don't really want to handle that stuff on my own.
I hold in my heart a persistent tension: as much as I despise war, I truly appreciate soldiers.
In fact, my opinions on war are largely informed by my relationship with people who have been soldiers.  I have had the privilege of knowing a good number of soldiers, sailors and Marines: my grandfather, my uncle, several dozen church members over the years.  On the occasions when I have spoken to them about war and fighting and such their perspectives have struck me as being remarkably circumspect.  Much more so than the macho posturing that one often encounters among militaristic sycophants.
None of them seem to hold their valor with any amount of pride, and most of them would rather tell you about their scars than their medals.  It has been extremely interesting to me that, in real life, men who have been to war are often more compassionate than those who it seems dream about it.  It is my experience of the actual veterans that I have known, rather than some idealized version, which informs my thinking on this list of things we owe our soldiers:

1. Mission: they should be given a purpose, and that purpose should be as crystal clear as possible.  We should never have to describe the places we send our soldiers as a quagmire.  I can guarantee you, in those times when our Armed forces found themselves in such a mess, it was not their own ineptitude that created it.
2. Honor: We should give them a change to be honorable, and we should honor their service, even and especially when we disagree with the job they have been given by our leaders, who we have elected.
3. Gratitude: And I'm not just talking about saying thanks on Veteran's Day, I'm talking about doing the things that need done to help them live the life that they fought for.   Whether it's physical and medical care or psychological healing, we need to make sure we're caring for ALL the wounds they might carry as s result of what we have asked of them.
4. Peace: Every soldier I have known dreamed of being home when they were away.  None of the ones who saw war up close and personal thought it was something to celebrate.  The best way we can thank our soldiers is to create a world where fighting is not necessary.
5. Grace: Realize that they are not superheroes, they are simply men and women who have a particular job, and that job benefits us all.  Understand that, even though they may be willing to lose their lives for our sake, we should do everything possible to make sure that they can enjoy a long and plentiful helping of the very things they fought for.

Those are the things I pledge to give our soldiers in any way that is within my power, I will do it with my votes and my prayers, with my words and my actions,  I will try to remember to say thank you whenever I can, until we study war no more.