Monday, May 30, 2011

Memorial Day:  There is an article in the Fresno newspaper this morning where WW-II vets recount how terrible war was (is), at seeing their friends killed, maimed, and wounded; how some found it so gruesome that (at least in the Air Corps) they grounded themselves. Then there was my dad.

During WW-II air crews completed a certain number of missions then rotated back to the States. Harland became seriously ill and was hospitalized, missing the last couple missions before his crew left. Finally recovering, he had the opportunity to go home with them, but chose not to. He wanted to finish the number of allotted missions. He had a sense of duty and a sense of commitment. That's why he was on board a bomber serving as a gunner instead of navigator when the aircraft apparently lost an engine on takeoff and crashed. Fully loaded with bombs, it exploded upon impact.

Yes, war is hell incarnate. It is callouse, unforgiving, and brutal, but men continued to fight on and endure because they have a sense of duty, knowing that if they dodn't, the lives of their families (mom, dad, younger siblings, wife, child) would be in danger. Some are willing to put their self in front of an enemy to shield those they love. Some don't.

To recall the words of another engaged in a deadly war of survival hundreds of years ago, he went into battle with a flag that said:

Amen.