I had the privilege of attending a going away party for the kid
next door – not an earthshaking event except for world events and
American involvement in it.
Dear Editor,
I had the privilege of attending a going away party for the kid next door – not an earthshaking event except for world events and American involvement in it.
He was going to Marine Corps basic training. The house was filled with friends from Live Oak and grammar school, young relatives, old relatives and mom and dad. It was a happy, festive occasion with everyone talking, smiling, and sometimes a bit quiet. The underlying feelings I believe were masked and unspoken – felt, but not revealed.
This was the young man’s decision and his choice; the path he wanted to follow at this time. None of us could really say it was right or wrong as many of us had made the same decision in the 60s. Support, love and encouragement were all we could give at this time. Sue (my wife) and I hugged mom on occasion and said everything would be OK.
I could not help but think for a fleeting moment why it could not have been me who has lived so many years going to the Corps instead of Chris who had lived so few. Young men leaving to serve America and actually to serve the world. Could we imagine a world without a Chris? Without a Mary, a Lupe, a Jose, a Frank, a Tom?
We send our youth everywhere in the world trying to make things right for them, but rarely do these countries appreciate the sacrifices of American youth. Could you imagine Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld standing up in front of a bunch of 60-year-olds telling them they were going to battle without body armor, without proper steel on their vehicles, without enough proper foodstuffs. Perhaps, but I have a feeling he would be put in the lead vehicle.
I sat there secretly admiring this young man and at the same time praying for him – hoping God would give him some sort of supernatural protection wherever he went. I want so much for Chris to come back to us in good shape. Sue and I remember the year, 1968, at Letterman Hospital in San Francisco – the vets from Nam. There is the feeling that this scene may repeat itself again. You wonder if trying to give democracy to the Arab world is worth one American life.
Mike Egan, Morgan Hill
