“I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe. Attack ships on fire off the shoulder of Orion. I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate. All those moments will be lost in time… like tears in rain… Time to die.” – Batty, Blade Runner – Rutger Hauer

“Cry ‘Havoc!’ and let slip the dogs of war” – Marc Antony, Julius Caesar – William Shakespeare

“Damn the torpedoes! Four bells. Captain Drayton, go ahead! Jouett, full speed!” – Admiral Farragut

“Sir, do you know they’ve cut us off? We’re entirely surrounded.” “Those poor bastards,” Puller said. “They’ve got us right where we want ’em. We can shoot in every direction now.” – Burke Davis, Marine!: The Life of Chesty Puller

“Loyalty to your comrades, when you come right down to it, has more
to do with bravery in battle than even patriotism does. You may want to be
brave, but your spirit can desert you when things really get rough. Only
you find you can’t let your comrades down and in the pinch they can’t let
you down either.” – Audie Murphy

“If you can walk away from a landing, it’s a good landing. If you use the airplane the next day, it’s an outstanding landing.” – Chuck Yeager

“Our veterans left everything they knew and loved and served with exemplary dedication and courage so we could all know a safer America and a more just world. They have been tested in ways the rest of us may never fully understand… On Veterans Day, and every day, let us show them the extraordinary gratitude they so rightly deserve…” – President Barack Obama, Veterans Day Proclamation, 2015

Veterans have their own language out of training, convenience and necessity. Every veteran’s experience was unique. Some of us spent time outside the wire, while some of us never left their home state. Different branches, different commands, and different MOS/AFSC/NEC specialties have completely different experiences during war time and peace time. The language of war is one that ties emotions to place and company. Where “Carl!” can be entire story itching to be told with laughter and SNAFU is definitely situation normal.

But Veteran’s Day isn’t just about the heroics of medal winners, it’s about all the Veterans that did their time in service to their country. No one is a lesser Veteran because they were a REMF (Rear Echelon Mother F*****). They still showed up. They did their job. They were just as important as everyone else. My very favorite people during my time in the service were the people who kept everything running. They did their jobs so well that they were nearly invisible. They were the people who worked at the Motor Pool. They were the cooks that kept us fed, sometimes 24 hours a day. Military pay was never high for us enlisted, so the dining hall kept us fed. Those are just the first 2 career fields to come to mind. The amount of paperwork that I never had to see must have been staggering; it was the government after all. And so, thank you to all my fellow Veterans, you all made it so I could do my job.

While Veteran’s Day is celebrated on Armistice Day, it’s about more than war. It’s about the warriors that come in all skills, duties, and designations. It’s about a day when we recognize the sons and daughters that left the safety of their homes and families to sign a contract and make a serious pledge to protect all of their country’s homes and families from all enemies foreign and domestic. Most of us had no idea what that actually meant in the light of day, but we did our best.

Thank you to all who took that oath and served before me, alongside me, and after me.