Today we celebrate our independence!!
On July 4, 1776 our country claimed it's independence from Great Britain, and ever since our freedom has been tested.
Throughout history men and women of this great country have laid down their lives, and put their lives on hold to give us the freedom we have today. The freedom that you have right now, sitting here reading this message, the freedom to sit on your back porch with your loved ones and watch the sun set, the freedom to run those errands we all complain about, and the freedom we have to watch our children grow.
Time and time again the men and women of this country have come to the plate to protect and defend our freedom: the Civil War, WWI, WWII, Korean War, Vietnam War, Gulf War, 9/11, and the current conflict in the Middle East. I'm sure I'm forgetting many other moments, but these were the first that came to mind.
Toby Keith's song An American Soldier captures the pure essence of the men and women serving us today:
I'm just trying to be a father,
Raise a daughter and a son,
Be a lover to their mother,
Everything to everyone.
Up and at 'em bright and early,
I'm all in my business suit,
Yeah, I'm dressed for success from my head down to my boots,
I don't do it for money, there's still bills that I can't pay,
I don't do it for the glory, I just do it anyway,
Providing for our future's my responsibility,
Yeah I'm real good under pressure, being all that I can be,
And I can't call in sick on Mondays when the weekends been to strong,
I just work straight through the holidays,
And sometimes all night long.
You can bet that I stand ready when the wolf growls at the door,
Hey, I'm solid, hey I'm steady, hey I'm true down to the core,
And I will always do my duty, no matter what the price,
I've counted up the cost, I know the sacrafice,
Oh, and I don't want to die for you,
But if dyin's asked of me,
I'll bear that cross with an honor,
'Cause freedom don't come free.
I'm an american soldier, an american,
Beside my brothers and my sisters I will proudly take a stand,
When liberty's in jeopardy I will always do what's right,
I'm out here on the front lines, sleep in peace tonight.
American soldier, I'm an American,
An American,
An American Soldier
As I sit here writing this post there are hundreds, if not thousands, of soldiers half way around the world. Each one of them has made personal sacrifices to protect the country they love!
One soldier that I would like to thank personally is a man that I've known since I was still in pigtails! His daughter and I were childhood playmates, and as long as I can remember he was in the Air Force Reserve.
Not only has he served once in the last 5 years, but he is on his SECOND tour of duty! Both he, and his family, have made numerous sacrifices. To protect OUR freedom, he has missed seeing his wife and three children, was not home to see his granddaughter's birth, and when he returns I'm sure he'll note the time he was away by how much his 4 granddaughters have grown.
I just want to say thank you to Mark, and all his fellow soldiers! Thank you for all your sacrifices, and for loving our country enough to defend our freedom! Hugs, be safe, and come back soon!!
