Recently had the opputunity to vist Washington DC as part of a men's chorus. To go and see those memorials is very sobering. I was able to go see the WWII memorial, the Korean War memorial, the Vietnam Wall, the DC WWI memorial, the Iwo Jima memorial, the Pentagon September 11 memorial, Arlington National Cemetery, and watch the changing of the gaurd at the Tomb of The Unknown Soldier.
We were able to sing at several of the momorials to honor those people who have given their lives for this country. We sang "Mansions of the Lord" from the movie We Were Soldiers at several of the memorials as well. I cannnot express how greatful I am for those men and women who gave their lives so that I can live in this great country. While not without it's problems, a country that produces men like the one in the above picture is still, in my mind, the greatest country on earth.
If any of you have the chance to see the Iwo Jima memorial, look for the man on the back side with the empty canteen cover. This is Jack Bradly, A US Navy Corpsman (medic) who was part of the flag rasing. His canteen cover is empty because he gave his canteen to a wounded Marine that he was caring for and then continued to fight and care for the wounded for the next three days without any water.
Just hearing storys like this and of men who gave their lives to save their buddies brings tears to my eyes and makes me very proud to be American. May God bless us.