I received in my email (three times now) a great letter from
a Special Forces doctor named Steve Ellison. Doctor Ellison is in San Antonio
doing his residency in emergency medicine. If any of you have not seen this letter
and would like a copy, please email me. Anyway, the letter describes his
experiences treating elderly patients many of whom are veterans of the Second
World War. It goes on to say how he, like most of us, took people like this for
granted without ever really taking a close look at the sacrifices these people
made so that we may enjoy the freedoms we have today. He now takes every
opportunity to talk to these patients and to learn of their experiences. What
started Doctor Ellison on this road to understanding was the cemetery scene in
“Saving Private Ryan” where the elderly gentleman we assume was Private Ryan
asks his wife if he was a good man.
Working here in England also provides some unique
perspective on these sacrifices. I work at the WWII home of the 303rd
Bomb Group. Also known as the “Hell’s Angles,” the 303rd Bomb
Group’s history is rich with tales of bravery. Occasionally, we get the
pleasure of hearing these tales first hand from visiting veterans of the group.
I also stay in touch with people that I have served with. I
spoke with a friend of mine, Dave, the other day for the first time in almost
two years. The conversation went as it usually does, name-calling, cajoling,
trips down memory lane, and the inevitable, “We REALLY need to get together!”
My wife hates him. My wife hates all my friends from that
macho paratrooper, Harley-riding, beer-drinking, bar-brawling, pre-married era.
I don’t know why. Maybe because she’s afraid I’d revert to that lifestyle again
if I got together with them. Maybe she’s jealous that I love those guys (in the
manly, male bonding, no, you can’t have my Bud Light kind of way) and had known
them for a long time before I met her.
Maybe she’s just a good judge of character.
I woke him up at 5:00 am. But he was getting up anyway to go
fishing with his cousin. Dave made his usual offer to fly me to Boston and put
me up at his place so we could go fishing, drinking, and do other manly
activities. He always does this. He’s offered to fly me to Alaska, Costa Rica,
Jamaica, and Boston on numerous occasions to join him on some wild adventure or
other. Always the same pitch…”C’mon, Mikey! We’ll all be dead too soon!” Always
I have to decline due to job requirements, family commitments, or previous
plans. And, although I always feel sad that I can’t go, I never feel guilty.
After all, I’m a grown-up with responsibilities now.
Right?
Then he told me that he had been to see a doctor a few weeks
ago and was told that he was developing liver disease from too much alcohol. He
told me this while pouring himself a drink. “Ah, what the hell, Mikey? We’re
soldiers! We’re not supposed to grow old, right?”
Anyway, we both made promises we knew we probably couldn’t
keep and went back to doing whatever it is that we do.
I decided to have a barbecue. There’s nothing like standing
in the great outdoors and communing with nature while searing big chunks of
animal flesh over the simulated charcoal fire of a propane fired backyard
incinerator known as a gas grill. Second only to activities involving alcohol,
women, and large caliber handguns for relieving depression, this is the natural
choice for manly men living in a world where the gun is taboo, farmers get to
go to jail for messing up some poor criminal’s day by shooting him while trying
to protect himself, and people let it happen because to rise up and complain
just wouldn’t be British.
But I digress…
Speaking of barbecues, Memorial Day is fast approaching.
Yes, the official announcement that summer is close at hand. Time to get those
grills out and get them tuned up and ready for action! “They GOTS to be some
grillin’ to be done somewhere!” Here’s a little something from the MasterCook
series to help you break it in for the upcoming season:
Take
4 boneless pork loin chops, trimmed, (about 1 pound) and a marinade consisting
of
1/4 cup
soy sauce
1 cup
beer, room temperature
2
tablespoons brown sugar
2
teaspoons grated fresh ginger root
Combine marinade
ingredients together well; place chops in a self-sealing plastic bag and pour
marinade over, seal bag and refrigerate 4-24 hours. Prepare medium-hot coals in
kettle-style grill. Remove chops from marinade; place on grill directly over
coals, lower grill lid and grill for 10 minutes, turning once.
But most of all, remember that some soldiers DO grow old,
and this Memorial Day, take a few minutes out from the barbecue, beer, and
other activities, and actually remember what this day is really all about. As
many of you are veterans, you already know what it is like to be away from
friends and loved ones in remote corners of the world for reasons nobody really
seems to be able to make clear to you. You know what it is to sacrifice. A lot
of you know what it means to lose a friend or relative in war or while training
for war. To this end, while busy in our own lives, it is very easy for us to
forget what Memorial Day is all about.
Take the time to thank a veteran of wars previous to yours.
Remember those who have gone before you. Drink to your fallen comrades. Call an
old army buddy and let him know he’s in your thoughts. Pray for those who will
go after us.
Peace,
Mike