Post by PG on Nov 23, 2004 11:29:30 GMT -5
After work, Friday morning, I run some logs to the sawyer. I get home late and sleep for a couple hours. Wing wakes me about two and we start off for Little Falls. Luke, my nephew and godson, is being deployed to Iraq.
We stop in Brainard, meeting up with my brother Thomas and his wife Elizabeth. We eat at a fast food place, just a bite, and set out for the last lap of the trip. The traffic is extreme.
I think of Luke, as we travel. He approached me about a canoe trip, during the summer, but our schedules never meshed, and it never happened. I feel guilty about that.
Luke is a part of Alpha Co., part of the Minnesota National Guard, and his company has been activated. First told they would be deployed to Kuwait, it now appears they will be going to Iraq.
Luke, with five MOSs, and very patriotic, plans to wrangle for mechanized infantry.
We reach the high school in Little Falls with no time to spare. We end up in the "nose bleed section." It is standing room only. We can see papa, mother, and various brothers, cousins, and relations, sitting across from us, close to the gym floor. They never see us and are wondering why we haven't come. We are kind of a close family.
1500 people have turned out for the commisioning service. There are about 150 troops in the company. Every time someone comes to the podium to talk - it is all they can do to get the folks to quit clapping.
I'm sure there are people present who believe we are doing the right thing to bring democracy to Iraq. I'm sure there are people present who are dubious about the whole thing, but hope for the best. There are probably people present who think we shouldn't be there at all and who think we should exit Iraq tomorrow. There doesn't seem to be anyone present who doesn't support the troops. I don't know when I've last seen such enthusiasm and support.
The battalion band is present and they are pumping out military marching music. They are very good. One of the band members sings a solo about being proud to be an American. The line about the "lakes of Minnesota" gets an especially loud cheer from the gathering.
The troops march in. For citizen soldiers, for any soldiers, they look like they mean business. Every step is crisp, every order is executed with perfect resolution. They look like they have a job to do and mean to get it done.
The color guard executes its duties precisely. I notice the two members of the color guard carrying rifles are women and that the rifles are M-16s. They all look like they know what they are doing. Somehow, this gives me a certain peace. Though they are national guard, not regular army, they've been well trained.
Someone sings the national anthem - and does an excellent job of it. The man standing next to me puffs out his chest until I fear the buttons will pop off his shirt. I figure him for an ex-military man. I can tell he is pleased with the support shown for the company. Given his age, I wonder what kind of support he received when he was in uniform.
A children's choir sets up beneath us, on the gym floor. The kids are about 3rd and 4th grade - and they are incredible. They are right on key and they belt out every song. They sing "God Bless America," "America The Beautiful," "This Land is Your Land," and every other patriotic song I've ever heard, while slides of the 150 troops in the company are displayed on the gym wall.
Some of the battalion officers and dignitaries speak. Good or poor speakers, they receive standing ovations. The state senator does a particularly poor job, overcome by emotion. Doesn't matter. We all clap and howl anyway. It's not about him - it's about the troops.
The governor speaks. He does a fine job. He speaks about the sacrifice of each member of the company on our behalf. We are no longer sending draftees - we are sending people out of the midst of our community - who've volunteered to fight on our behalf.
I pray a silent prayer for Luke's safety.
God Bless America
PG