Definition of a Veteran

A veteran - whether active duty, retired, national guard or reserve - is someone who, at one point in their life, wrote a blank check made payable to "The United States of America,"
for an amount of "up to and including their life."
That is Honor, and there are way too many people in this country who no longer understand it.
Author Unknown

In Honor of Those

In honor of those left behind
In a strange and foreign land,
We close our eyes and contemplate
On the sacrifice at hand.

In honor of those who gave their life
We salute with tear-stained eyes.
We reap the rewards of your suffering-
Freedom remains through your compromise.

In honor of those who made it home
We say a prayer for you,
For you have to live your every day
With memories of what you had to do.

In honor of those who serve today
We thank you for heeding your call.
May the Lord our God lead this land
And may we never let freedom fall!
©Lucy A. Cain
Excerpt from Secure the Fort (And Remain Under God), A Military Mother's Message to America