I have never been shot at. Thank you Veterans.

       In my lifetime, nearly forty years on this earth, I have never been fired on.  I have never been subject to tyranny.  I have never been governed by someone who derives power from violence.  I have never been exposed to the horrors of war.  I have never so much as had to ration things so our soldiers had enough.  When I hold my rifle, it is at a rifle range, for the purpose of punching holes in a sheet of paper, for recreation.
       My point is: not only do I owe all veterans a debt of gratitude, I owe more than I can repay.  Unlike most of my whining blogger cohorts, I realize that the only reason I have the latitude to be able to communicate a message of my choosing, and only my choosing, subject to no regulation, is because of the sacrifice of others.  (Also I am aware of the difference between Veteran's day and Memorial day, unlike most of our politicians and media.)   In fact, you veterans have done such a good job protecting the rest of us, that most of us have never known the harsh realities of war.         
       My uncle, my Godfather, returned injured from service.  He was missing part of one leg and required a prosthetic.  I won't lie and say he never let it bother him.  I won't say he maintained his faith.  I will not sugar coat the truth of what happened.  I never knew him before then, but everyone who did says he was very much a changed man.  He died a few years ago.  The world is worse off for it.
       My Father returned from the same war physically whole.  He still doesn't talk about the fighting.  He shares many stories about the days in the Motor pool, but is silent on the rest.  My brothers and I asked him once why.  He said that someone who has seen combat simply has no frame of reference to the rest of us.  No amount of reading books, or watching movies, and certainly not playing video games, will ever give the rest of us an ability to relate. 
       I like to pretend I understand what he means.  I get what he's saying, but I have never experienced something that could not be explained to someone who hadn't also experienced it.  My Father is quite articulate when he wants to be.  So if he says he can't find a way to tell us about the things he experienced, I have to assume no one could. 
       So when, on this day devoted to you and the sacrifices you have made; I say "Thank you" to all of the veterans, it is with the full knowledge that everything I have, everything I am, and everything I have the right to achieve is because of you.  No matter what else you have learned know this: at least one person appreciates what you have done, what some of you still do.  Even if I am not capable of fully understanding it.  Thank you, and God bless.