“In war, there are no unwounded soldiers.” -Jose Narosky
Today is Veteran’s Day. But you know that. I wasn’t going to make a post today, at least not one about anything serious, but I saw some of the things people were saying today in honor of our veterans and I started thinking…. and well, here we are.
The photos above are of my grandfathers. They were both veterans of World War II. The one on the left is my father’s father, Tom Summerlin. I never met him. He passed away while my father was a child. All I know of him is contained in a few old photos like this and a few stories I’ve heard from relatives over the years. My dad always said he never talked about the war.
The photo on the left is my mother’s father, Newton Coleman. I grew up with him always close by. In fact, when I was a small child, we lived on his farm. He was a large part of my life. I adored him. As a child, I saw him nearly every day. He also never really talked about the war. Until his last few weeks when he was in the hospital.
Because the stories he shared with us when he was so sick are not my right to share with you, I won’t. But I will tell you that just because a man or woman comes home from a war without a physical wound, they are not left untouched by what they have seen and experienced. And just because they don’t talk about it does not mean that they do not carry tremendous pain and guilt with them every day.
We owe our veterans, and all public servants, our deepest gratitude. They suffer horrible things so we don’t have to.
