MH's Mother Mayhem

Sleeplessness, Moose Boxers and an Abundance of Gratitude

 I attempted sleep last night (key word here is attempt when you are waiting for the return of a teen from a night out) and hunkered down under my favorite blankie with thoughts of Veterans’ Day firmly planted in my head. I am the granddaughter of a Marine surgeon who spent years operating in the Pacific theater during WWII. We have his diaries where he horrifically recalls the nameless pained faced of the mutilated that he tried to put back together under harsh conditions. The numbers are staggering. Once he operated on 1,300 men in a week, working around the clock

My Dad was an Army guy. I am in constant amazement of how anyone could get through basic training after hearing his stories. I had a miniscule taste of what he went through when I was under the misconception that taking a semester of ROTC as a college sophomore would lead to an easy A. Easy “A” my A**! Speaking of which, Sgt. Major Walters put his foot on mine when I was firing an M16 with a firm “Keep you’re a** down unless you want it shot off!” I wished him a Merry Christmas before winter break and his knee jerk response was spitting out “Christmas is like any other day cadet” two inches from my face. I told him that it isn’t. Somewhere after I pointed out cookies and twinkle lights, he had what I believe is called a conniption.

Here’s the thing that kept me from slumber. How do you adequately express gratitude to someone who willfully leaves their family, their children, their country knowing they may not make it home? Someone I have never met is keeping guard and willing to take a bullet for ME and my freedom while I go about my busy life until I wind up snuggled in my toasty bed in my moose boxers.

The unique thing about Veterans’ Day is that we have the opportunity to honor the dead and living. THANK YOU to those who rose to the occasion in times past and those who currently serve, for having my family’s back and protecting this great country.