I take great pride in being a military Veteran.
I’m also proud to be father of a United States Marine.
I’ve had the unique privilege of visiting Arlington Cemetery where the site of more than 300,000 white crosses, marking the graves of brave soldiers who gave their lives for this country, takes your breath away.
I’ve stood atop the hill overlooking our nation’s capitol as I witnessed the traditional Changing of the Guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
I’ve spent hours standing at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Wall in D.C. paying my respects and watching thousands of others crying, praying, and conducting a traditional rubbing of the name of their loved ones. 58,195 names appear on that highly polished monument and countless tears have been shed in the silence and reverence in the shadow of that wall.
Having done these things makes it unusually effortless for me to know and feel the true meaning of Veterans Day. However, for many others, it’s nothing more than another day that the banks are closed and the mail isn’t delivered.
If you’re too busy to pause for a few minutes today in honor of Veterans, I suggest you examine closely what you’re doing that’s so important at this moment. I would also suggest you reflect on the fact that you’re only doing whatever it is because of our Veterans. It’s their training, dedication, effort, patriotism, and love of country that provide us with the freedom we so often take for granted.
Take just a moment or two out of your very busy schedule to view this video as a reminder of why we put this day aside to honor our Veterans. Upon completion of the video, I think you might want to seek out a Veteran or the family of a Veteran and provide a simple but heartfelt “Thank You” for the freedoms you enjoy every day of your life.
Personally, I don’t believe there should be a Veterans Day. A single day is a very small price to pay for the enormous sacrifice made by so many hundreds of thousands of American men and women to guarantee the freedom for so many others. I think every day should be Veterans Day.
In fact, for many people it is. Check the following link to see what goes on every day at the Dallas Fort Worth International Airport as our soldiers return home from all over the world. This too should bring a tear to your eye and maybe an incentive to treat this day as the hallowed day that it is.
About Harry K. Jones
Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.