A Soldier's Christmas Poem And Other Wartime Seasonal Expressions of Light and Love

I meant to post the video below yesterday, a thoughtful reworking of 'Twas the Night Before Christmas called "A Soldier's Christmas Poem." Though the day has passed, the sentiment within its lines still rings true no matter what holiday you and your family personally celebrate.

Yes, it is meant to be the season of light and love. Though, sometimes, it doesn't feel that way, does it?

So many of us rushing around trying to get all of our holiday-related tasks done in time (and hoping we won't get too irritated bumping into so many others tending to their "to do" lists, too).

So many (this year especially) struggling just to keep food on a table and a roof over heads...the luxury of presents being entirely out of the question. So many others who, again, have to spend the holidays distracted -- wondering and worrying about loved ones deployed overseas.



In extended, a few more holiday-related clips and grafs.

I do hope that all of you have found ways to bring the beauty of the season into your life this year, sharing as much goodness as you can with those you love. Here's to a brighter and more loving 2010.

Thank You, Veterans, on Veterans Day

Thank you, veterans, for your service and sacrifice.

Here's a list of events and promotions to celebrate your service. And, if you're a civilian, unsure of how to extend your thanks to veterans today, here are a few suggestions.

Veterans Day 2009 Events and Promotions

Far from a complete compilation, I've drawn together a number of activities and promotions (free food for vets! :o) that are being offered to coincide with Veterans Day, which takes place next Wednesday, November 11.

I'll be adding to this list throughout the week.

Whatever you do from now until then, be sure to find some small or large way to extend yourself to the military families in your community (I've already posted on my plans; if you're in the Rockford/DeKalb, IL area, please join me).

NIU Veterans Club Kicks Off Its Veterans Day Events as National Military Family Month Begins

November ushers in National Military Family Month (read the president's proclamation), with Veterans Day observations around the country beginning in earnest this week and extending into next.

As I complete my final semester at Northern Illinois University, I'm looking forward to facilitating, attending and photographing a number of events spearheaded by its Veterans Club.

This will be my fourth Veterans Day at NIU (yes, I'm a slow poke); at the bottom of this post (in extended) you'll find links to previous years' coverage. Also: More info on the this year's events.

1st Annual Marine Week Kicks off in Chicago, Runs May 11-17, 2009

Marine Week will be hosted by different cities each year offering residents and visitors a chance to attend any number of free events. It also offers Marines a chance to give back directly to and interact directly with their own communities.

Details:

Established to recognize the contributions of local Marine heroes, their families, and the cities from which they came, Marine Week also showcases the rich history and traditions of our beloved Corps.

During the week, citizens will find Marines volunteering at local food kitchens and community parks, inspiring students by sharing their stories of service to their country, conducting intense physical fitness challenges and martial arts demonstrations, and performing with local musical groups.

The Marine Corps will also display aircraft, vehicles, and the latest technology and equipment used to protect and preserve our Nation and its citizens.

I am hoping to attend at least one event, if time permits.

When and if that happens, I'll be sure to share my photos and experience with you. Full schedule of private and public events (free public happenings in extended).

Spreading the Warmth: Honoring Veterans at Christmastime

Recent stories that bring to life the many ways that we honor our veterans during the season of tinsel and light.

A Fine Helping of Art For, By And About Veterans Begins Sunday

An Iraq infantryman named Zero offers a compelling introduction to this post, which brings together a number of art programs and exhibits taking place on television and in galleries and statehouses and theaters across the country this summer and fall.

The one common denominator: the fusion of expression through art and the experience of war.

A Thank You to Those Who Care for Our Nation's Wounded

Though bowed,
You are not broken.
Though stretched,
You're strong, my friend.
You are resilient like a willow --
You'll find your spring again.
Though your branches
Now weigh heavy,
Your roots go deep and true.
This is just a change of season --
God has better plans for you.

-- Sharon Hudnell

Back in May, as has been the case since 1984 on each Friday before Mother's Day, we celebrated what's known as Military Spouse Appreciation Day. Spouse Buzz, a place where military spouses can connect with one another, hosted guest blogger Lieutenant General William Caldwell, Commanding General, U.S. Army Combined Arms Center and Ft. Leavenworth.

This is what he wrote at the time:

We’ve watched you nurse your wounded warriors back to health in military hospitals. You’re there, still full of hope, when Troopers with head injuries don’t recognize their family. You encourage them. You decorate their rooms. You read their favorite books to them. You are the first to notice when they can squeeze your hand again for the first time.

The spouse on the home front pays the bills, fixes the car, gets the kids to soccer practice, helps with the homework and building the kids pinewood derby car... you are our true heroes. You have unique experiences that only other military spouses can comprehend. ...

All military spouses know why their loved ones serve, and they share in their hardship and sacrifice and ask for little in return. It is humbling to those of us who wear the uniform to know that our best friends, our spouses, are serving along side us. Those of us in uniform serve because we love our Nation; our spouses do it for love of us. Our service men and women could not continue in this profession without your help, and for that we are eternally grateful…and so is our Nation.

Honoring the Fallen This Memorial Day

Keeping our military families in mind this weekend.

Memorial Dedication Slated for Slain NIU Student, Army Vet Julianna Gehant

From my Northern Star column today :

We at home often don’t realize the full value of our returning veterans. While some of us know we should be there for them as they return to us after deployment, many of us don’t realize that they are equipped to help us, too. Their knowledge and presence are more important to us as a civilian population than we realize.

It’s been nearly seven weeks since NIU’s Veterans Club lost one of its own – 12-year Army veteran Julianna Gehant – on that dark February day that took the lives of five others on our campus.

At Julianna’s funeral service, Rev. James E. Kruse spoke of the decorated soldier’s life and the circumstances of her death. He speculated about Julianna: Was she the woman students heard calling for others to run from a shooter as he reloaded and prepared to strike again?

“I don’t know for certain, but she’s a hero in my mind,” Kruse said at the Holy Cross Church service.

This Friday, many of us will gather together at NIU’s Veterans Memorial to remember Julianna’s service to our country and her time as a Huskie. We will join in laying a dedication plaque and paying our respects to an individual who embodied what it meant to be a good citizen and student. And we will offer our support for our Veterans Club members still grieving their great loss. And we will learn from them as well. ...

The dedication ceremony for Julianna Gehant begins at 11 a.m. Friday at the NIU Veterans Memorial, on the corner of College Avenue and Castle Drive (across from Lowden Hall and next to the East Lagoon). The public is invited to attend, as are all students and faculty.

I hope to see you there.

For more details visit the NIU Veterans Club.<

4,000 and 488

Together with the news that 25 fuel trucks transporting fuel to our forces in Afghanistan were bombed today, it is a sad Easter as we reach our 4,000th fatal casualty in the Iraq War (not confirmed yet in the media, but I have received word of it via email by a knowledgeable source; ICasualties.org is showing the same) alongside our 488th fatal loss in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan under the Operation Enduring Freedom umbrella.

My thoughts and prayers to our military families.

[UPDATE] From AP:

A roadside bomb killed four U.S. soldiers in Baghdad on Sunday, the military said, pushing the overall American death toll in the five-year war to at least 4,000. The grim milestone came on the same day that rockets and mortars pounded the U.S.-protected Green Zone, underscoring the fragile security situation and the resilience of both Sunni and Shiite extremist groups despite an overall lull in violence.

Reflecting on the 5th Anniversary of the Iraq War

From my Northern Star column, which runs today:

This week ushers in the 5th anniversary of the start of the war in Iraq. While war markers rarely bring a smile to the face as other anniversaries do, and while numbers are cold and sterile and harbor nothing of the humanity or gravity of such losses, they serve a useful purpose.

They ask that we observe, if only briefly, the sacrifices made for us half a world away.

Quick: Do you know how many troops have deployed, become injured, or even died so far? If you said 1.6 million (this first figure includes Afghanistan) have deployed you’d be on target. Toss in nearly 30,000 injured and nearly 4,000 killed in action in Iraq alone, and you’re totally engaged.

You’re lonely, too.

According to a Pew Research News IQ survey released last week, only 28 percent of us currently know how many U.S. troops have died in Iraq. This figure is down from 54 percent in August 2007. The indifference or even boredom reflects what’s going on in the media, too. War coverage made up only 3 percent of last month’s overall “newshole,” down from July 2007’s more generous 15 percent slice of the news pie.

IAVA is asking us to join together in signing an open letter to the media asking that they increase coverage of the Iraq war. They've made it easy for us to send via this handy online form.

Sunday's NIU Memorial to be Simulcast at Iraq's Camp Victory; Remembering Another Lost Huskie

On January 31, 2008, indirect fire ended the life of 1st Lt. David Schultz serving in Iraq with the 82nd Airbone Division.

Two short weeks later, on February 14, the 2005 NIU alum was joined by five other Huskies -- one of them a 12-year Army veteran herself -- after the senseless events that unfolded in Cole Hall that day.

This coming Sunday, NIU and its supporters will draw together throughout the community, throughout the state, throughout the country -- their embrace even extending as far as the sands of Iraq -- to honor those lost.

A Tribute to the Life of Army Veteran and NIU Student Julianna Gehant

"God seemed to have made her just what she was that she might be a blessing to others, and when the influence of her character and abilities began to be felt, removed her. These are the Mysteries, my Dear, that we cannot contemplate without astonishment, but which will nevertheless be explained hereafter, and must in the mean time be revered in silence."

-- William Cowper

In a few hours, my husband and I along with a veteran friend are attending slain NIU student and 12-year Army veteran Julianna Gehant's visitation. While I don't wish to overstate this, I was near her and the others when the incident occurred and will carry them in my heart forever.

I did not personally know Julianna, but it's been my pleasure to have met a time or two with a few of the fine members of the NIU Veterans Club (images and words from last November's NIU Veteran's Day ceremony); a few of them even helped with a class paper of mine written last semester on returning veterans seeking college degrees following service to their country.

Returning veterans are among a community's greatest assets, among their greatest citizens. In times of crises and dark and violent circumstances on our soil or abroad, they step up to defend us; it's a shame that more in our society don't realize the strong leaders our returning veterans are.

Julianna was clearly one of these.

Emotional Warmth and Sunny Saturday Light Chase Away the Darkness at NIU

I wanted to quickly share a few photos and reflections with you of my return visit to NIU yesterday [see them all at Flickr].

It was a chilly day, in the upper 20's; but, the warm hugs and heartfelt nods among Huskies -- now feeling more related and open to one another than at any time before -- leaning on one another cast a soothing glow in my heart. It was quite a tonic to my soul.

From the Home Front: Missing You This Christmas

Keeping our troops, military families and veterans in my heart and thoughts during this holiday season, and yearning 2008 will bring us closer to realizing peace on earth and good will towards all.

"Christmas Without You" by Beth I. Cohen:

Wounded and Waiting: Videos that Bring Sacrifice to Light

Kathie Costos has created another series of bracing and poignant videos along with a new PTSD group on YouTube for anyone wishing to share related multimedia clips. These videos are heartfelt tributes that reflect the real burdens and costs of war borne by the individuals who fight and the military families who support their warriors.

As such, please bear in mind that they may be difficult for some especially close to the situation to view.

YouTubers Speak Out Again: Let's Help Our Vets

It may be long in coming, slow in arriving, but Americans are finally beginning to realize that our defenders can use some defending, too.

And so, many are rising to the challenge and spreading the news, asking for others to join with us to care about our veterans. Gives me great hope. Though these are only videos, the sentiment behind them should shore up our courage to continue advocating for what's right.

These clips are varied, but the message is the same: America cares about you, and we're ready to cover your back dear soldier, sailor, airman and Marine.

Thanksgiving During Wartime

Time has been so very short on this end, and it's late (or is that early?) as it is. It's time for peaceful slumbers, something I know that half a world away many of our troops are not blessed with tonight. Many on the home front are equally sleepless, missing loved ones at every toss and turn.

Before I retire for a few hours of sleep, I'd like to take the opportunity to send out my thanks to everyone who has joined with so many of us in advocating for more attention to the plight of our returning troops, and for more action in getting resources and help where it's most needed.

It's been a great honor to work with you these past two years, though I wish the work wouldn't be necessary for any of us to do. Yet, we do it because we love our country, and we love our fellow brothers and sisters serving in uniform in our name.

What follows in extended are some of the words and reflections on Thanksgiving during wartime found in today's newspapers. May you and yours be together today in safety and peace.

And for those who are far away from home, thank you for your sacrifice today and every day.

Dixon Elks Lodge Veteran's Dinner: Pictures and Remarks

So much has been happening over the past few days on the national news front as far as combat PTSD is concerned, but offline responsibilities have taken me away from taking a look at much of it myself.

After sharing my pictures and remarks from a local event I attended last night honoring our area troops and veterans, I'll begin chipping away at the mountain of studies and reports that have come out since last week. Thanks for your patience.

I'd like to send out my deep appreciation to the members of the Dixon [IL] Elks Lodge #779 for hosting such a fine evening last night. What an honor to speak to a crowd of veterans from WWII to Iraq, and to have received such a warm wave of applause -- many even standing, which moved me greatly -- in addition to the positive comments they shared with me following my remarks.

I was taken aback and so humbled. Thank you...