ABQCOWBOY
Regular Joe....
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I thought I would share a story with the board. I have been looking for a decent shed for a couple of months now. I came across a nice one a couple of weeks ago. I got in touch with the guy and it just so happens that he was in San Diego but has a home here in Rio Rancho NM.
Well, as you may have guessed, the man is in the Service. He has been keeping his house here in NM for the past year and a half in the hopes that he and his family would soon move back. They have been renting it out but I guess it just got to be too much as he has finally decided to sell it.
His family has moved back closer to his in-laws in Idaho for over a year and he is here, in NM, trying to get this house closed out. I had an opportunity to drink a beer with him today. First time I had ever meet the man. Seems he is shipping out for Afghanistan early next year. This will be his 3rd tour (2 in Iraq and now this one in Afghanistan). He is really giving me a great deal because he needs to get this thing done before he ships out.
Anyhow, we were working out the details and he asked me, how soon did I think I could have the shed moved. I told him, "Well, I'll start looking for somebody to move it after the Holiday." He kinda looked at me and said, "Man, I'm sorry but I don't think I can wait that long. I have to have this thing done by the end of November." I said to him, "Well, I can try to find somebody tomorrow but a lot of people usually take Veterans day off so I don't know if I will have much luck." He looked at me and said, "Oh, I'm sorry. When you said Holiday, I thought you ment Thanks Giving." He went on to say, "I'm sorry, we don't usually get that day off so I just completely forgot that tomorrow was a Holiday." I know what the guy was talking about. I completely understand and I had forgotten how that works.
Well, that small piece of conversation made me realize all over again just how much we owe these men and women. Don't miss understand me. We owe all of the Veterans a great deal of thanks for there service. We can never really say it enough. However, these men and women, these families, they are not only fighting for our way of life, there families are sacraficing greatly. This man is selling his home at a loss and his family is making personal sacrafices, relocating, changing schools, facing personal and financial difficulties, a whole slew of things that I can't imagine right this minute, in order to continue to uphold his commitment.
As I sit here this eveing, I am feeling a lot of different things. I feel bad, I feel sad, I feel guilty, I feel ashamed but I also feel proud. I am busting with pride. I feel relieved and I feel joyful. I feel safe in the knowledge that we have these kinds of people to do a job nobody likes but everybody needs. Mostly, I feel thankful. Thankful for these men and women and their families. Thankful that my family is safe because of these people. Thankful that I have the opportunity to thank all the Veterans. Thankful that I have the opportunity to thank all the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, Guardsman and Coasties who are currently serving, along with their families.
Thanks to all of you for your Service.
ABQ
Well, as you may have guessed, the man is in the Service. He has been keeping his house here in NM for the past year and a half in the hopes that he and his family would soon move back. They have been renting it out but I guess it just got to be too much as he has finally decided to sell it.
His family has moved back closer to his in-laws in Idaho for over a year and he is here, in NM, trying to get this house closed out. I had an opportunity to drink a beer with him today. First time I had ever meet the man. Seems he is shipping out for Afghanistan early next year. This will be his 3rd tour (2 in Iraq and now this one in Afghanistan). He is really giving me a great deal because he needs to get this thing done before he ships out.
Anyhow, we were working out the details and he asked me, how soon did I think I could have the shed moved. I told him, "Well, I'll start looking for somebody to move it after the Holiday." He kinda looked at me and said, "Man, I'm sorry but I don't think I can wait that long. I have to have this thing done by the end of November." I said to him, "Well, I can try to find somebody tomorrow but a lot of people usually take Veterans day off so I don't know if I will have much luck." He looked at me and said, "Oh, I'm sorry. When you said Holiday, I thought you ment Thanks Giving." He went on to say, "I'm sorry, we don't usually get that day off so I just completely forgot that tomorrow was a Holiday." I know what the guy was talking about. I completely understand and I had forgotten how that works.
Well, that small piece of conversation made me realize all over again just how much we owe these men and women. Don't miss understand me. We owe all of the Veterans a great deal of thanks for there service. We can never really say it enough. However, these men and women, these families, they are not only fighting for our way of life, there families are sacraficing greatly. This man is selling his home at a loss and his family is making personal sacrafices, relocating, changing schools, facing personal and financial difficulties, a whole slew of things that I can't imagine right this minute, in order to continue to uphold his commitment.
As I sit here this eveing, I am feeling a lot of different things. I feel bad, I feel sad, I feel guilty, I feel ashamed but I also feel proud. I am busting with pride. I feel relieved and I feel joyful. I feel safe in the knowledge that we have these kinds of people to do a job nobody likes but everybody needs. Mostly, I feel thankful. Thankful for these men and women and their families. Thankful that my family is safe because of these people. Thankful that I have the opportunity to thank all the Veterans. Thankful that I have the opportunity to thank all the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines, Guardsman and Coasties who are currently serving, along with their families.
Thanks to all of you for your Service.
ABQ
