Supporting Our Troops - My Journey (Part Four)

September Eleventh. (I can't bring myself to abbreviate it into numbers - it deserves the full force of the words, for it was a day which carried the full force of evil.) I believed that we were going to be at war. I didn't know where, I didn't know when, but I believed it was going to happen. I knew that we had the best military in the world - the best trained, the best equiped, the best character. Young men and women were going to be going to a foreign land, to do what the rest of us wouldn't have to. They were going to have to put everything they had trained for into practice. Some would be wounded. Some would die far from home. This was war.

On September 20, President Bush came before a joint session of Congress to address the nation. In that memorable speech, he said:

"I have a message for our military: Be ready. I've called the Armed Forces to alert, and there is a reason. The hour is coming when America will act, and you will make us proud."

Now, I knew what I believed was going to come true. At the end of the speech, K and I sat and discussed what we could do for our troops. And, I do believe that Mom was smiling down. Thus began our journey to do more than put a ribbon on our car or fly a flag out of the window. We wanted to reach out and make a difference.

We have been actively involved in troop support projects ever since. I believe that we have made a difference, but what we did not expect was the difference that it made in us. These fine young men and women have come into our lives - some for brief moments and some for lifetime friendships. We have been blessed by knowing them. We will ever be grateful for what they have given to us - our freedom, the blessings of liberty, the joy that comes from sleeping safe each night. You have "made us proud." God Bless You, All. And, Thank You!!!