A real live soldier; I met one!

Friday-Veterans Day
Emily and I went with Dad to our small town’s veterans day lunch. Our small Swedish town is filled with veterans and seniors, and we had many WW2 and Korean War veterans there. As Emily and I went up to get our food, we certainly did NOT expect to see an active duty soldier walk in the door. Fine; call me sheltered, innocent, whatever, but seeing active duty soldiers in Nebraska, let alone Oakland, is not a common sight. I must mention, also, that I have never personally met a soldier. So to walk up to him to introduce myself was quite courageous… for me. Emily and I had figured out from his uniform and the way people greeted him that he was Michael P., one of the soldiers we had written while he was deployed to Iraq. It was very memorable for me, as he was the first living, breathing soldier I have ever met. A very exciting experience for a sheltered, isolated, brainwashed patriotic Nebraskan, don’t you think?

And then, as if that wasn’t exciting enough, he offered to visit with us Monday and talk about his time in Iraq. So he came into our Fitness Center and talked for quite a while, while we interrogated him about his experiences. He left Tuesday to go back to Iraq after two weeks on leave, so it was so nice of him to share his time with us. It was very encouraging to hear his words; anonymous, of course, would say that many soldiers would disagree with his views on women in the military and the war in Iraq, but I wholeheartedly agree and appreciate his words. He is a true soldier, and it was an honor to meet him.

I am very tired and better finish up; just wanted to let you all know what exciting things I have been up to. God bless Michael, and all of our troops out there, fighting for our freedom…

May we strive to use it to God’s glory, and not misuse it.
Jennifer