Thursday, November 11: Femme Fatale
THANK A SOLDIER
by Deborah Elliott-Upton
Today is Veterans’ Day. I can’t think of a better time to pay tribute to those who give their all to keep our country from harm’s way. While you’re reading this article, someone is dying for our freedom to write anything we want about the United States of America.
We are free to protest our lawmakers as much as lawbreakers. We can burn flags, hold a demonstration, gripe and complain about our leadership—all because someone stood up for our right to do so whether they believed the same as us or not—they did believe in our freedom to do so.
If you’ve wondered why this particular day was chosen as a remembrance day for our veterans, it’s because World War I formally ended at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 1918.
Our military men and women deserve to be remembered and respected every day of the year, not just on November 11. Sometimes we may not know what we should do or have the words to express our feelings.
There have been many wonderful stories written about and during wartime. Most of them do not celebrate or glorify war. For those of us who have not had to serve our country in this way, it is a way we can understand what it must be like to be in those circumstances. Real life in the military isn’t just tales of heroic adventures. Sometimes it’s just the truth of one man’s fight for honor, justice and the American Way.
Wartime books that have left strong impressions on me are First Blood by David Morell, A Farewell to Arms by Ernest Hemingway, Stephen Crane’s The Red Badge of Courage, and of course, just about anything by Tom Clancy.
Tony Burton has put together a crime fiction anthology with military settings and/or protagonists. Sales of Murder To Mil-Spec will benefit Homes For Our Troops, an organization that helps build specially adapted homes for severely wounded veterans at no cost to the veterans. One way to say thank you to our veterans is to help this organization. It’s a good day to do something for those who have given so much to all of us.
Thank you for this wonderful post reminding everyone how much we owe our veterans, and a special thank you for mentioning Murder To Mil-Spec which supports Homes For Our Troops, an excellent and worthwhile endeavor.
Terrie
Terrie– Someone had asked a few months ago if I’d do a blurb for the book when it came out in October, but they never sent the info. I thought this was such a good idea — and Tony’s anthologies are always so good– that I wanted to mention the book today. I hope all of y’all buy one for yourselves and another one to give to a veteran.
Thanks for a very important heartfelt reminder.
Hi, Deborah, for this wonderful post in honor of our veterans and for including Murder to Mil-Spec in it. I’m the one who contacted you a while back about posting about the book, and then I forgot to send you the info until like a week ago. I feared I was too late, but I guess even worse is that the email apparently never arrived. Sigh. But thank you for remembering anyway!
Urgh. “Hi, Deborah,” should have been “Thanks, Deborah.” Everyone needs an editor…
Wonderful post Deborah!
Respect for veterans seems to be slipping away similar to the desire to read. People are so caught up in the moment that they slowly forget what allowed them to be in that moment.
I am glad people are still willing to take a stand now and honor those who do what we do not do. It takes a special person to give their life for the way of life for another.