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A Merry Christmas to all, and a Special Thanks to those who serve to keep us Free.

MM

What is a Veteran?

He is the cop on the beat who spent six months in Saudi Arabia sweating two gallons a day making sure the armored personnel carriers didn't run out of fuel.

He is the barroom loudmouth, dumber than five wooden planks, whose overgrown frat-boy behavior is outweighed a hundred times in the cosmic scales by four hours of exquisite bravery near the 38th parallel.

She (or he) is the nurse who fought against futility and went to sleep sobbing every night for two solid years in Da Nang.

He is the POW who went away one person and came back another – or didn't come back AT ALL.

He is the Parris Island drill instructor who has never seen combat – but has saved countless lives by turning slouchy, no-account rednecks and gang members into Marines, and teaching them to watch each other's backs.

He is the parade-riding Legionnaire who pins on his ribbons and medals with a prosthetic hand.

He is the career quartermaster who watches the ribbons and medals pass him by.

He is the three anonymous heroes in The Tomb Of The Unknowns, whose presence at the Arlington National Cemetery must forever preserve the memory of all anonymous heroes whose valor dies unrecognized with them on the battlefield or in the ocean's sunless deep.

He is the old guy bagging groceries at the supermarket – palsied now and aggravatingly slow – who helped liberate a Nazi death camp and who wishes all day long that his wife were still alive to hold him when the nightmares come.

He is an ordinary and yet an extraordinary human being – a person who offered some of his life's most vital years in the service of his country, and who sacrificed his ambitions so others would not have to sacrifice theirs.

He is a soldier and a savior and a sword against the darkness, and he is nothing more than the finest, greatest testimony on behalf of the finest, greatest nation ever known.

So remember, each time you see someone who has served our country, just lean over and say Thank You. That's all most people need, and in most cases it will mean more than any medals they could have been awarded or were awarded.

It's the soldier, not the reporter, Who gave us our freedom of the press.
It's the soldier, not the poet, Who gave us our freedom of speech.
It's the soldier, not the campus organizer, Who gave us our freedom to demonstrate.
It's the soldier, Who salutes the flag, Who serves others with respect for the flag, And whose coffin is draped by the flag,

To each of you…My Eternal Gratitude.

MM

I could quote many eloquent words from many men who have a much greater pen than I. I could include words from song, from Presidents, from many past heroes and from countless other patriots this great nation has known….but I don't think any words would ever truly do justice to the way I feel, the gratitude that is in my heart and the honor that I feel so many deserve for their service, their sacrifice, and their selfless dedication to obtaining our freedom and for keeping us free. Instead, I wish only to say this…

To all who served, to all who serve now, in so many ways both seen and unseen. For all you have done, and for what you continue to do everyday. I promise I will never forget, and I will honor each and everyone of you with prayer, eternal gratitude and with my unwavering patriotism to this great nation with every breath of free air I take. I hope to be an American that you can be glad you have given so much of yourselves providing me with so much more than I would have had without you. To those of time past, present, and with calm assurance of those who are yet to come….

THANK YOU

MM