Memorial Day 2006: An Appreciation

My wife's father is a Marine. Served a few tours in Vietnam, and recently retired from the Justice Department as an accomplished litigator in the natural resources division, Indian Affairs Bureau. Over the years Hank and I have exchanged books as we share enthusiam for history, baseball, and the outdoors.

He has lent me his copy of One Bullet Away by former Marine Captain Nathaniel Fick - a story of an idealistic young man who makes a decision to apply to be a Marine Corps officer in the late 90's, and follows his tour of duty into the post-9/11 world war. I'm only about half-way through, but its serving as tonic for me this Memorial Day weekend.

We can certainly express dissent about Bush's foreign policy - I do, in spades. But it simply cannot be overstated how admirably so many of our young people exhibit love of country. Fick recalls the fourteen leadership traits of the U.S. Marine Corps: bearing, courage, decisiveness, dependability, endurance, enthusiasm, initiative, integrity, judgment, justice, knowledge, loyalty, tact, and unselfishness.

Words cannot express our appreciation on this Memorial Day.