On a cold January evening in 1987 we took our 19-year-old son to the airport for a flight to Europe. He was going for semester of college in Germany. It was a wonderful opportunity for him and he was excited. I already missed him.
On the way home we decided on the spur of the moment to stop and visit the Vietnam Memorial. We had never seen it before. It was midnight. We were the only ones there. It was very cold and our breath froze in the night air. There was the wall – a long dark wall stretching out into the night. It appeared to go on forever. Names covered the wall. The names of those killed in a war far away were etched into the stone. I started reading name after name. One young man had the same name as my son. I started crying. I knew no one whose name was etched there on the wall, and yet I felt like I knew each one of them. These were the children of other mothers and fathers who loved them and cried for their lost children. What a tremendous price we pay for war.
I am thankful for this nation of ours. It is my home. I am thankful for great sacrifices so many have made to fight for this country and for the freedom we enjoy. I pray for peace and for the day when war will be no more.
God bless America.
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