Reflections on Veteran’s Day

I may be a bit old fashioned, but I like patriotic stuff. I put up our flag on the front of the house every day when I was a kid. In college, I put up the flag and took it down each day at the dorm. Here we are on another Veteran’s Day – a day of observance for those who have sacrificed so much for all of us. We honor them with a day of reflection.

When I visited Pearl Harbor there was a real sense of gratitude for the sailors that gave their lives. As we boarded the USS Arizona for a tour, it bothered me that some of the visitors were chatting away, of all things, in a burial ground. As I look back on it now, maybe that noise came from a sense of discomfort. All of us standing in a place where history was made and so many were sacrificed. From my experience, reverence was the more appropriate response, but we all respond differently based on our unique life journey. Some wave and display flags, others are silent. We are a diverse country with many responses. One thing is for sure, veterans should be honored and all Americans should reflect with gratitude for their sacrifice!