On the Shortness of Life

Since September 11, 2001 our country has been at war. Thousands of people have lost their lives, and the military men and women as well as the Country as a whole understand the dangers in the Middle East. What many don't often realize is how dangerous the military's job is even when they're stateside.

According to this article, early last night four Army helicopter aviators died during a training exercise near Joint Base Lewis McChord in Washington State.

They weren't inside some Middle Eastern country, they were within the borders of our own.

Yes, I'm sure they knew the dangers of their job each time they set foot on a helicopter, and though I didn't know them personally, I've known many like them. They did what they did each day, and loved it. It was who they were.

That doesn't make the loss any less severe for the  families and friends of the four pilots, or the family and friends of any person who dies unexpectedly.

I wish more than anything there was a way to guarantee the safety of our men and women during training, but there's not.  

This holiday season while everyone celebrates the joy of being together, we should all take a moment to realize how short life truly is.

Take a moment and thank those military men and women you know, not just for the sacrifices they've already made, but for the ones they could make.

My heart goes out to their families and friends.

May the aviators rest in peace.

R.S.

On September 11: With Guest Post From the Corpsman

September 11 Memorial

Ten years.


A decade.


3650 days.


A million memories.


Two wars.


Thousands of lives lost.


Millions of lives changed.




Today marks the ten year anniversary of one of our Country's greatest tragedies. 


What are you doing to remember it?


Are you:


Sitting around drinking a beer?


Working?


Sleeping off a night of partying, or preparing to party?


Are you living today like it is any other day?


Take a few moments, a few seconds, a breath-- and remember all that has been lost because of this day.

If you see a service member-- Police, EMT, Fire Fighter, Marine, Navy, Army, Air Force-- thank them for all they have done-- and remember they lost friends, family, and co-workers as well.


Remember that nothing is free in America.


Not even our Freedom.


It all comes at a price.


What price are you willing to pay?

R.S.


Below is a guest post from my dear friend, the Corpsman. Take a moment to read his memories of that fateful day in 2001--and the years that have followed. You can follow him on twitter.

The Day that Changed my Life

2,606

87

60

125

59

40

5,029

2,606

I was doing what any recently graduated 17 year-old does on a Tuesday off.  Sleeping in.  I was supposed to go over to a friend’s house and watch anime while her mom and dad did business in town.  I remember my mom coming in and turning on the TV in my room.  She says “Two planes just flew into the World Trade Center in New York and another one into the Pentagon.”  I remember watching those first images I had seen and thinking to myself that this was a movie.  There was no way that this could happen in our country.  Seems that I was naïve as the rest of the country.

I remember that morning clearly.  I watched as the towers fell.  And then the reports of Flight 93 crashing in that field in Pennsylvania, as the result of the courageous passengers taking the cockpit.  Todd Beamer, who I assume led the revolt, was overheard by an operator over a cell phone, “Are you guys ready?  Let’s roll.”  I only wish that I would be able to do the same thing in that situation.  He and all on the rest on Flight 93 are real heroes in my book.

I spent the rest of the day at my friend’s house, keeping our plans.  We both agreed that we needed to do something to take our minds off the bad day.  We had heard and seen enough pain, and we enjoyed each other’s company.

I already knew that I was going into the military.  This day gave me a tangible reason to go.  This was the first time in my life that I was so sure of something.  And even knowing where it would lead, I was not afraid.  I wanted the bastards to pay for what they did.  These feelings have waned over time, but I am still committed to the service of my country, and to my fellow service members, the same as I was when I signed my name on that line.  My life in the military has been nothing but serving others, and I find that a fitting tribute to any man courageous enough to lay down his life for something he believes in.

I’ve deployed four times since joining the military.  Once on a hospital ship at the beginning of the invasion in Iraq.  One to the coast of Somalia to hunt pirates.  One to the Philippines to assist in the hunt for Al-Qaeda in Asia, and the last was to Iraq, to train and ready the Iraqi Army to defend their country.  I’ve made some good friends along the way, as I have also lost some great ones.  Some say it comes from the job.  Peace comes from knowing that they died doing something they believed in.

The almost spontaneous response of patriotism in this country after that day was overwhelming.  But it was sad.  Why does it take an event of this magnitude for someone to be patriotic?  You should be honored and grateful to fly the nations flag every day of the year, not just after a tragedy.  Now, I understand that being a patriot isn’t just about flying the flag, but it’s about support.  People say they don’t support the wars.  However, that’s all people cried for the days following the events on September 11^th.  It just shows me that the average American doesn’t have the resolve or determination to see something through to the end.

Everyone knew that this was going to be a different type of war.  I’ve been there, and I can say that the cause is just.  What greater mission than to give another country the means to fight for what they believe in?  After all, if we don’t enable them to do so, who’s to say that someone else, someone more villainous and evil will fill that power void.  We need to see it through to the end, whatever the price.  If we end it prematurely, then what is the price paid by all those who have given their lives worth.  In my opinion, it would all be in vain.

Even though it seems so long ago, the day is as fresh in my mind as when it happened.  I will never forget.

2,606 – Deaths in the World Trade Center

87 – Passengers of American Airlines Flight 11, which at 0846 crashed into the North Tower

60 – Passengers of United Airlines Flight 175, which at 0903 crashed into the South Tower

125 – Deaths in the Pentagon

59 – Passengers of American Airlines Flight 77, which at 0937 crashed into the western side of the Pentagon

40 – Passengers of United Flight 93, which crashed into a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania at 1003

5,029 – Coalition forces that have died in Iraq

2,606 – Coalition forces that have died in Afghanistan

I remember today, and every day.  Have you forgotten?  What will you do to honor them?

n  Doc Seven Echo, “The Corpsman”

On America's Priorities

The other day I was perusing the never ending status updates on Facebook when I came across this one:

Another (booze and drug addled) celebrity dies and now the whole world is gonna talk about it, but quick question, who can name a single US Servicemen who died in the last week? We have had 14 KIA's since July 15th but they are not in the news I can clearly see where America's priorities are .... God Bless those that sacrifice so much for us.

Now, far be it for me to trust anything I read on a Social Media network, after all, they're not much different than the tabloids at the checkout stands. The ones screaming, "Elvis was abducted by aliens and now has squid-like love child." 

With this in mind I did a little research of my own and found the statement to be pretty accurate. In the six days between July 12 and 17, 2011, the United States lost eight citizens in the ongoing 'War on Terror' in Afghanistan. This information was not found in a national newspaper, or even broadcast on local news stations. Instead, I discovered it, after considerable research, in a tiny newspaper serving the Silicon Valley.

These men lost their lives fighting under our flag, for the rights and freedoms of not only ourselves, but those in a country without the basic benefits we're afforded simply for being United States Citizens; yet the barely rated acknowledgement. 

On July 23, 2011, admitted drug addict and alcoholic singer, Amy Winehouse died in her home under unknown and questionable circumstances. Unless you've been living under a rock, lack the ability to read, or have roommates and friends who have taken a vow of silence, you've heard of her death. 

On July 26, 2011 among family, friends, and HUNDREDS of people who knew nothing about her other than she sang and had a penchant for illegal substances and erratic behavior, she was laid to rest. 

Her death is still being talked about (Hell, this blog right here is spotlighting her death--go figure), and will continue to be talked about for days, weeks, months, and years to come. Every year on the 'anniversary' of her death, tribute will be paid her. 

Will those eight men be remembered by anyone other than their close family and friends? 

Not likely. 

What makes a single  celebrity's life so much more valuable than the lives of the men and women who are actually doing something more useful than entertaining us with their questionable talents and shocking public behavior? 

Every day more and more American Marines, Soldiers, Sailors, and Airmen, lose their lives in the continued battle under the Red, White, and Blue... and every day, their sacrifices are ignored, forgotten, or overshadowed because some rich socialite made their personal, private demons, public grist for the gossip mill. 

How many more American citizens need to die to over shadow one self indulgent entertainer? Two-thousand? A million? 

One more American death is too many.

I for one will not be offering remembrance to those whose lives were taken by their own demons, and touted in the public eye as martyrs to their art-- though I feel for their families, and the friends who actually knew them. 

I will hold each day, a special place in my heart for the memories of every man and woman whose loss is remembered only by those whose lives are now a little emptier, a little darker. In my world, they are the celebrities, the martyrs who died for a worthy cause. They deserve the moment of silence, the burning candle, and the tears shed. 

Sgt. 1st Class Kenneth B. Elwell, 33, of Holland, Pa; Pfc. Tyler M. Springman, 19, of Hartland, Maine; Spc. Frank R. Gross, 25, of Oldsmar, Fla.; Sgt. Lex L. Lewis, 40, of Rapid City, S.D.; Staff Sgt. Wyatt A. Goldsmith, 28, of Colville, Wash.; Sgt. Jeremy R. Summers, 27, of Mount Olivet, Ky.; Seaman Aaron D. Ullom, 20, of Midland, Mich.; Lance Cpl. Robert S. Greniger, 21, of Greenfield, Minn.; and all other Marines, Soldiers, Sailors, and Airmen who put your lives on the line each day, or selflessly gave your lives for the lives and freedom of those less fortunate-- I thank you. May your lives and memories never be tarnished. 

R.S.