Please bear with me and allow me to get something off of my chest before I dive into the real reason for this post...
Dear Delta Airlines: I was so thoroughly appalled that it would take public outcry based on a video posted on youtube for you to realize that your policies not only did not support our troops but placed an unbelievable burden on these soldiers returning from a tour of duty that permits you to rip off their fellow Americans. If you truly appreciate their service you should give each of them a ticket for two to any destination of their choice on any airlines of their choice for it most certainly wouldn't be you! Secondly you should drop ALL baggage surcharges that were imposed as a scheme to profit off of a bad situation... we now have to bear with passengers taking extra time to load and unload carry on baggage or to have them loaded at the door of the aircraft... Great policy!
And finally... there's a delta between my thighs that you all can kiss before you'll ever see me as a passenger again!
Now, to the real post...
Next month my son will depart on his third tour of duty in Iraq... And, you know, it wouldn't be so bad... thing have settled down, the insurgency has been quelled... BUT... the last time my son deployed my Grandson was about 6 weeks old. That was tough enough and when my son returned he was almost a year old. I went to Germany to be there when he returned. I pulled every string and every favor possible to be able to spend time with him and was allowed to be on the ramp when he disembarked... it was great! But it was hard seeing my son trying to deal with seeing his son not recognize him and not quite sure what the deal was with this new guy...
Next month my son departs on his third tour of duty in Iraq... And , you know, it's gonna be pretty damn hard... Princess Jaden is 10 and is at a point where Dad can mediate between Mom and the Tween... K-Mak is 7 and Daddy is the most important person in her life... she's pretty emotional, as it is. But Jeremiah Makaio will be 2 1/2... his Daddy is everything in his world! He gets to beat up on Daddy, go riding on the motorcycle and quads with him, Daddy helps him to lay down and go to bed even after a long day that starts around 5:30 Am and ends around 5 PM... sometimes. Hehehe... who are we kidding? Daddy falls asleep first most of the time and J-Mak comes down stairs, carrying his sippy cup and telling us to shhhhhh... Daddy's sleeping!
Lately my son, like so many other soldiers, has begun to question things... It's not The Suck, he's a Soldier and he can handle that... It's not the hardship, he's a Soldier and he can handle that... It's not the danger, he's a soldier and he can handle that... It's leaving his family again, like so many other soldiers, and not being there for the milestones, the birthdays, the holidays... Not being there to wipe away the tears, not being there to celebrate the A's on the Report Cards, it's just not being there...
And that's why he has begun to question things... The "Thanks for your service" just don't have the same meaning to the 1 per cent of the American population who have voluntarily chosen to serve our country. It seems hollow when they return and listen to people complain about Walmart not having the right size or color or it's too hot or it's too cold... It's hard to come back and face people who don't understand you... I've said it before and I'll say it again... it's not enough to say "Thanks for your service"... next time you come across a servicemember, take the time to take their hand, to pat their back and look them in the eyes and feel what they feel... see what they see...
Next month my son will deploy for the third time to Iraq... and as before, I will pull every string, call in every favor, abuse every privilege to be there when he departs again... he's a Soldier and deserves no less...
A Facebook conversation we had yesterday...
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