Being a veteran means a lot to me, even though I regard my personal military service as being so mundane as to almost be unworthy of inclusion with so many brave and wonderful men and women who served, and often died in their country’s service.  Yes I am a veteran, even a disabled one.  But my disability, the product of too much lifting and loud engine noises in a maintenance shop, pales compared to that of the veterans who went to war, and came back shot, or having lost limbs to explosions, and especially, to those who never came back.

But I recognize that serving in the military does not always mean fighting wars.  It means much more.

It means giving up a lot of personal freedom to serve a larger purpose then simple self interest or survival.  It means striving to serve so that others might have their freedoms, self interest and survival.

It means doing lousy work for lousy pay, in lousy conditions.  It means obeying orders you may not want to.   It means families not seeing you for days on end.  It means long shifts for weeks without rest.

It isn’t always war.  Most veterans are veterans of cleaning toilets or doing a mundane job.  But all, whether combat, support or administrative all serve in their way that larger purpose.

The planes and tanks and ships won’t fly drive or sail without the thousands who support them. The combat soldiers need to eat, to have medical care, chapels and yes, latrines. 

Every aspect of the military only works because there is a team involved who are all focused, each in their individual way, on that larger greater good:

Freedom.  I salute all veterans whether active or reserve, retired or just separated, living and dead.

Here are a couple clips to say thank you.  Pay particular attention to the last one, it celebrates the slowly diminishing veterans who fought in WW2.  My late father in law was one such.  He died a few years ago, and every year there are fewer and fewer of these great patriots.