Thank you to all that have served and still do today.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/eEs4ke7cdNQ?feature=player_detailpage%25Please do not forget those 'behind the lines', as they have suffered greatly as well. Mom worked at the Casualty office at FT Lewis during the Viet Nam conflict. Her job? Making arrangements for the fallen to come home. Making arrangements for their burials. Notifying the families of the matters. That's a pretty xxxxxx job.
I could tell you of horror stories she brought home with her. One that sticks in my mind was a young man coming home that had been brainwashed by the Vietcong. He was freed from a POW camp, yet all he could do was sit crossed legged and chant "I am a monkey... I am a monkey...".
Many a night, I would awake to Mom crying in the middle of the night. I did my best to comfort her, but the scars never went away. She left her job, and it took decades for her to overcome the trauma she endured. No, it's not like laying your life on the line, but there is collateral damage made.
She was never a Veteran. She was a 'civilian' that supported our Nation in a never appreciated way. I remember the tears. I remember the nightmares. I remember rubbing the cramps out of her feet. I remember making dinner for the family so she didn't have to when she got home.
This day belongs to many. Never forget.
Thank you to all that have served in any way.