Honoring Those Who Serve & An Important Perspective

I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to all those men and women who serve and have served in our armed forces! Your sacrifices can never be understood by those who have not shared them, but we love you, and appreciate everything you do and have done for the sake of our freedom.

I also thought that today would be a good day to share the following poem. Everywhere you look you see a yellow ribbon, or a bumper sticker proclaiming "Support Our Troops," which are both great reminders and noble sentiments; however, I'm afraid that we've forgotten an important group of people - one that sacrifices just as much at home as our servicemen and women do overseas.

The following was written by one of them:
Do You Know Me?

walking through wal-mart, and around school...
we lock eyes for a moment...
and i smile like i'm supposed to...
but inside i'm begging you to care...
or at least try to understand why my eyes aren't mirroring my smile...

My husband is gone...
fighting for your freedom and security...
So that today... you can go on with your life
Without a thought of uncertainty... or a thought about the actual sacrifice...

You might be numb to that word, "Sacrifice"...
because it's so often linked to men like my husband...
but it echos through my very soul every minute of every day.



because i sacrifice too...
but to say so is needy and weak...
but i want to tell you...
i need to tell you what i sacrifice...

I'm sacrificing my personal sense of security... when i hear a bump in the night, i am left alone to face it...
i'm sacrificing the job i love... taking care of the man i adore with every part of my being...
I'm sacrificing a kiss and a hug at the end of a really long... really bad day...
i'm sacrificing feeling loved, cherished and beautiful when my husband touches me...
i'm sacrificing connecting with him on the level i need to...
i'm sacrificing a helping hand when my child wakes up at 4am...
and my son is sacrificing playtime with daddy...

i'm tired...
i'm overwhelmed...
i feel like a burden to my family...
i'm lonely beyond words...
my bed feels too big...
my home feels empty...
i feel lost...



and i can't make it go away...

no amount of sleep...
no matter how many hugs i get from my family...
no matter how many times i hear it... "The time will fly!"...

it still feels like every day is a lifetime...

all i can do is put on my face...
but it's like the longer i have that face plastered on,
the harder is is to take it off...
and i want to take it off... and just cry...
i ache to weep and get it all out... but i just can't seem to let myself go...

and i can't tell him...
and i can't tell you...
because i have to stay strong...
i have to keep things together...

but do you see me?
please see me...

this is what i sacrifice for you...
you and your damn freedom.

So today, when you thank a soldier, pray for a marine, or salute a sailor, remember the Army/Navy/Marine/Air Force/Coast Guard member's wife and children who live down the street - going through the motions of their day-to-day while aching every second to have their loved ones home - and do what you can to ease their burdens, too :)

Thank you,


P.S. ~ To the author of the poem: Thank you for sharing your heart with us, and thank you for letting me post it here! I love you, and I'm praying for you, and I'm always just a phone call away!