Essays
Our Lasting Gratitude
OUR LASTING GRATITUDE
To be heralded as a man or woman of valor is quite an extra-ordinary honor, worthy of our applause. Yet our nation has been blessed with hundreds of thousands of military veterans who should also be thanked for contributions performed behind the scenes with little or no fanfare. Not every veteran was or will be an Audey Murphy or a Ruby Bradley. Most veterans are rather ordinary men and women who simply do their as-signments with remarkable precision. To all of these, hearing and heeding Paul’s exhortation recorded in Rom.13:7, we give honor to whom honor is due. There is a glory in the ordinary that must continue to be recognized and never minimized. Only a few veterans return home as celebrated war heroes, and even those are quick to shy away from such a title. Not many are awarded the prestigious Medal of Honor or a Silver Cross or a Purple Heart of a Bronze Star, yet we owe a debt of gratitude to each and every one of our military veterans for the many sacrifices they've made.
We salute all of our veterans for their dedication - - for suffering hardships of varying degrees - - being separated from family and loved ones, sometimes in a world away from home. We salute you for your love of our country, for your loyalty and your patriotism. We salute you for your untold hours of rigorous training and your ongoing commitment to excellence, a conscientiousness deserving commendation. We applaud your sense of teamwork; your willingness to work for the good of the whole; your attention to detail; and your readiness to go into battle should your be needed and to lay down your life for others if such is required. For these sterling qualities and so many more, we offer you our lasting gratitude.
To all who have served, in whatever capacity, in whatever era, in whatever arena, WE SALUTE YOU FOR YOUR SERVICE to our beloved country.
Terry Siverd / Cortland Church of Christ
