On Tuesday, Army Ranger Sgt. 1st Class Leroy Petry, was awarded the Medal of Honor by President Obama. This high honor is awarded to military personnel who show "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her life above and beyond the call of duty while engaged in an action against an enemy of the United States."
If you haven't heard Petry's story, it's one that will leaving you thinking, "What a courageous man" and "Wow, what a badass!" After taking bullets to his legs, Petry grabbed a live grenade to throw away from his fellow soldiers. As he was throwing the grenade, it exploded, causing him to lose his hand and part of his arm. He saved not only his own life, but the lives of his fellow soldiers.
Many of us have had some training experience in our lives, whether it was training for a sport or on-the-job training. We learn all about the the position, the expectations, the day-to-day requirements, and so on. Our military men and women are constantly involved in rigorous training and are prepared to do "whatever it takes."
But... How many of us have been aware of what we need to do to succeed in a job or sport? How many of us have from time-to-time done something maybe we weren't supposed to do at work (like go on Facebook or browse the Internet)? Yet when work gets busy, we do what we need to do. We pull late nights, we skip lunch, we do a rush job on emergencies, and so on.
I've come to learn that most our of military heroes are very humble. I'm sure the Medal of Honor winners would say, "I just did what I had to do" but in reality, they did more than that. No amount of training can make you mentally prepared to throw a live grenade after already being shot. No amount of training can make you instantly land on a grenade to save your friends and fellow soldiers. That comes from within. That comes from being a natural hero.
For a list of all recipients of the Medal of Honor and their unbelievable stories, you can go here: http://www.cmohs.org/recipient-archive.php
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Monday, July 4, 2011
Freedom Is Not Free
After having DVR'ed the History Channel's "WWII in HD" two years ago, my husband and I finally finished watching the series yesterday. The series is comprised of real footage from WWII. It is extremely informative and extremely heartbreaking, which is why it took two years to watch...
It is now 2011, and we are still engaged in a war. While I am by no means trying to undercut the severity of the current fighting, it does not compare to the ferociousness of the battles of World War II.
In WWII, 415,000 American soldiers died. In total, between 50-70 million people died, from all over the world, and they weren't all soldiers...
Today, it is very easy to feel removed from the fighting in Afghanistan. We are not asked to purchase war bonds to support and fund the war. We do not anxiously sit around the radio to hear the latest news. Civilian men are not being forced to leave their families to do a job they've never been trained to do. Civilian women aren't required to leave the home to become welders or to produce heavy machinery.
While we may not all be connected to the current war as we probably should be, it is important to understand the freedom we enjoy everyday did not, and does not, come free.
The topic of war is typically a heated and divided discussion. Many support the efforts but are skeptical of a positive outcome, especially those having lived through the Vietnam War era. Many disagree with war in any shape or form. And, many others don't know what to think...
But whether we agree with war or not, as we celebrate our Independence Day, we should remember that without our Continental Army, we may not have become the United States we know today. Without the young and courageous men and women of the two world wars, our country may have endured more civilian casualties. Without the volunteer heroes in Iraq and Afghanistan, September 11th may not have been the only sad date we'd have to remember.
It is now 2011, and we are still engaged in a war. While I am by no means trying to undercut the severity of the current fighting, it does not compare to the ferociousness of the battles of World War II.
In WWII, 415,000 American soldiers died. In total, between 50-70 million people died, from all over the world, and they weren't all soldiers...
Today, it is very easy to feel removed from the fighting in Afghanistan. We are not asked to purchase war bonds to support and fund the war. We do not anxiously sit around the radio to hear the latest news. Civilian men are not being forced to leave their families to do a job they've never been trained to do. Civilian women aren't required to leave the home to become welders or to produce heavy machinery.
While we may not all be connected to the current war as we probably should be, it is important to understand the freedom we enjoy everyday did not, and does not, come free.
The topic of war is typically a heated and divided discussion. Many support the efforts but are skeptical of a positive outcome, especially those having lived through the Vietnam War era. Many disagree with war in any shape or form. And, many others don't know what to think...
But whether we agree with war or not, as we celebrate our Independence Day, we should remember that without our Continental Army, we may not have become the United States we know today. Without the young and courageous men and women of the two world wars, our country may have endured more civilian casualties. Without the volunteer heroes in Iraq and Afghanistan, September 11th may not have been the only sad date we'd have to remember.
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