Remembering Heroes

The Gulf Coast Symphony has an outdoor concert and fireworks every year in honor of those who serve the armed forces. This is one of our favorite events to attend here. The program consists of patriotic hymns. One of the numbers is a medley of the armed forces songs and they ask all vets and people currently serving to stand up when they hear their song.
We went with the Reynolds family and the Kangs with their two cute maltese babies. John got back earlier this year from deployment in Iraq.


I scanned the park grounds for WW II vets. There are not many of them around anymore. I am so grateful for all those who serve but the WW II vets I am most thankful for. My father was a young boy when WWII broke in the Philippines. He doesn't talk much about it but he would sometimes tell me snipets. His father died protecting one of his sisters during a Japanese raid in Manila in which during the chaos his whole family got separated. While hiding from the Japanese, he watched his pet dog killed by one of the invading soldiers. Then the Americans came. He freaked out the first time he saw a tank. He remembered the Hershey chocolates that troops dropped from the planes to the villages. But most of all he remembers HOPE brought by the Americans. What would life be had the US not gone to the Pacific ? I know I would not be here blogging away. I would not have the life I have now.


So on this day, I thank those who have served and continue to serve in the armed forces. I thank the men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice. I thank the families who are left behind some temporarily some permanently. Lastly, I thank my friends currently serving, especially my sister in law, Berni, my brother in law, James and my husband for serving without complaint, but do it humbly and quietly. You are heroes!