Tomorrow is Memorial Day here in the United States. It's the day we set aside to remember those who have served in our armed services. It is observed on the last Monday of May. Government offices across the country take Memorial Day off, giving almost everybody a 3-day weekend. I think it would be fitting if only those who had served got that day off, but what do I know.
Last night I watched several episodes of the "Band of Brothers" series on TV. Good job by Hanks and Spielberg. Unlike a lot of war movies "Band of Brothers" is fact-based and includes interviews with the actual subjects. It's one of the few movies that makes me think of our nations servicemen (and women) whether it's Memorial day or not.
My father, along with the fathers (and not a few mothers) of a great many people my age, served during WWII. Max (NMN) Welton was a Seabee and served on the island of Adak up in the Aleutians. He doesn't think he did much good up there during the war and I recently felt the need to straighten him out on how Max K. Welton thinks of his service.
Max NMN Welton was in construction. He built houses and worked in a ship-yard. And when war came, Max MNM Welton signed up and built air- fields in Alaska. The stories he tells of that time don't sound very heroic. In fact most of them include something along the lines of "I can't believe we got away with this, but...". These stories leave me shaking my head and laughing. I'm sure there are other stories that aren't so funny. But he doesn't talk about those.
No country such as ours can survive without individuals willing to serve. Because when it comes to defending a nation, people matter. Yes, high-tech equipment and ships and planes are important. But it takes people to employ those tools.
And it's the people who leave holes among families and friends. Serving in the armed forces usually means you don't bring down the same income you could as a civilian. You may not have your family close at hand. You may be in harms way. And you may not come back.
Nobody was shooting at Max MNM Welton back then. But for those guys flying off the airstrips things were a little more serious. And I'm sure they were very glad when they were trying to get home and the airstrip that Max MNM Welton helped build came into view.
In my humble opinion, everyone who has worn the uniform deserves our thanks. And not just on memorial day. And not just those who've been shot at. Everyone.
My dad doesn't really see it like that. He was just doing a job up there. I think it's time for me to call him up and straighten him out on all that.
Max K. Welton
(*) "NMN" is how Uncle Sam encodes the names of people like my dad who have No Middle Name. You see, every form has a space for the middle name and it has to be filled with something. Go figure.