Jewells of Thought

Veterans Day may be over, but our servicemen and women live with the memories and the pain every day. The cards I received from Uncle Tom all those years ago brought back my own memories. The men I have had the honor to interview their stories are in my head the context in which our interviews happened, if their wives were nearby, I remember the time spent listening to the little stories behind the story bit. They were all wonderful experiences.

The cards Uncle Tom sent me really underscored the need my Grandpa was showing me in doing this outreach for our family Veterans. Grandpa Freddy had such a gift for knowing how to care for people. He saw that his brother-in-law needed some good, old-fashioned, one on one, interview and some tender, loving care that soldiers from Vietnam didn’t get.

The emotion each card had was handwritten inside. The other Veterans showed me their appreciation in other ways even at Church with hugs and so forth. These cards struck my heart telling me my time listening to him meant something to him and I hope it was healing for his heart.

Life has redirected my life a bit. I haven’t interviewed a Veteran in many years. Instead I have interviewed my Grandma Betty, and briefly my Great Aunt Irene to find out more details about my Dad’s Dad. That has been a slightly different experience, but something just as special being that they both told me more about how Grandpa Leo shipped out towards WW 2 and how he looked coming back from the war. Grandma described how gaunt and tired he looked when he returned from being a prisoner for 10 months. I may have been the interviewer, but this was surreal for me. They lived through the experience as Grandpa was a world away just like Aunt Helen did during Vietnam and having lost a first child. Families see events in different lights.

The Family of a Veteran is important while he’s serving and even more important when he comes back to civilian life. Healing and nurturing is important and continues on through the Veterans life well past Memorial Day, Independence Day and Veterans Day.

Don’t allow the fast pace of life to deter you from talking to the Veterans in your life. Maybe they need someone to care.