Greenlight A Vet shines a light on the impact transitioning veterans make in and out of uniform in communities across the country. (Photo: Photo courtesy of Walmart Corp.)
It’s the time to pause, pay tribute and remember those who have fought for our freedom today on Veteran’s Day. It falls on the 11th hour, on the 11th day, of the 11th month of every year and many are still giving the ultimate sacrifice to keep us safe.
It’s not just this day but every day we’re reminded of the dangers and horrors of war. Many of our families have an empty chair at the dinner table. Some of us will fly flags, mount poppies, put flowers on graves, tie a yellow ribbon around a tree or (new this year), shine a greenlight for a vet to acknowledge their sacrifice and say a heartfelt thank-you.
Today’s veterans volunteer their service. It’s not mandatory like it was back in the day when my husband served during Vietnam or my dad in World War II and Korea. They were proud to serve, though it was hard to be enlisted right out of high school when you knew very little about yourself or the world.
God bless those who choose to fight for the freedom to make this a better world. My prayers and gratitude go out to all our veterans for putting their lives on the line to keep us safe. May we someday put down our arms and live in peace.
I will shine my green light in your honor.
Paying Tribute to our Veterans on Veteran’s Day!
Happy Veteran’s Day!
Pat from the ‘ol kitchen table
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Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2015 Pat Ruppel
Thanks, Pat. I didn’t know about the green light but this day is an important one for me as my grandfather served in WWII and my son more recently in the War on Terror. I’ve lost family and friends from Vietnam to the most recent wars and it breaks my heart that we haven’t found a way to live peacefully yet.
I know, Lois, same with me. Though I haven’t lost family in war, I had family and friends serve in WWII, Korea, Vietnam and Desert Storm. I know many of my classmates died in Vietnam. It hurts that we haven’t found a way to live peacefully yet, but, I see glimmers of hope.
In the midst of all the reported horrors of war and terrorists and the uprising of social injustices, I still see stories of love and compassion that comes forth. If we were lost and doomed as a species, these reports would no longer affect us and we wouldn’t feel anything from them.
Thank you for sharing. My heart hurts, too, that there is so much anger and hate in the world and I’m sorry your family suffered the losses of loved ones because of it. God bless you, my friend, as we continue to pray and work towards peace.
Thank you for this beautiful tribute honouring veterans everywhere Pat. And in light of the horrendous Paris attacks, your post is even more poignant as yet more suffering goes on for innocent people and wars that aren’t even proper wars. So much loss, so much pain…we can but pray and keep strong and honour all who face danger every day so that we may live a life of freedom. We have so much to be thankful for…God bless you my dear friend… <3
So glad you stopped by, Sherri, and shared in this tribute honoring our veterans. Sadly, it’s true that there is so much loss and so much pain. Seems to be a vicious cycle of the human drama. You’d think we’d get it after awhile. Maybe that could be our next frontier: instead of exploring space, we could explore the mysticism of Divine love and all the mysterious workings of the heart. Hugs and blessings to you, my friend. <3
Yes, that would be so much better… hugs and blessings to you too dear friend, as we look to the good and keep peace and beauty alive in our hearts…
Amen to that. Thank you, Sherri. 🙂
Pat, this was a beautiful tribute to our vets. With the recent terrorists activities around the world, I am so thankful we have the brave men and women of our military who volunteer to risk it all to keep us safe.
Thank you, Susan. I agree given the recent terrorist activities around the world, we need to keep them in our thoughts and prayers even more for the risks they take to keep us safe.