A Hero Lost
I know that this is a little off beat from the norm for me but this involves family. The letter below is from a Mother who has to face the death of her oldest Son(19) who lost his life in Iraq. I’m not going to get into the right/wrong of the war. What I hope this letter does is wake up some of us oldtimers and help us see that a whole new generation is willing to fight for freedom. This young man was family to us. His mother and Grandparents have been friends for 40 years or more. Any death is hard to take, but for me this was like losing a Son.
Thanks for the rant
Hi…I can’t remember if I wrote back to you or not…everything is a huge, horrible blur…
Thank you for writing to me…so many people that I don’t know have written, sent food, cards…it is all so sweet…reaching out to me in this time of deep pain and unbelief.
I saw my Seth yesterday. I didn’t know it was going to be an option, given the nature of the accident he was in…so I had resigned myself to the fact that that wasn’t an option…then yesterday the funeral director called me and told me that I could come spend some time with my boy. It felt like my heart was getting crushed all over again as I dealt with the feelings and thoughts that accompany an invitation like that…
All the way to the funeral home, and all the way up the aisle…I was SURE that when I looked in the face of the soldier lying in that casket, I would see that this was a mistake…that I could finally wake up…but I couldn’t wake up…
It was my Seth. The freckles, his handsome, strong face, his nose that looks like mine….I wept. How could this be true? He looked so still. Like him, but not like him. I wanted to hold him, to warm him…but I couldn’t…it was very, very sad…my heart that had broken so many times that week, broke again.
He was all dressed in his uniform, all his badges and medals in perfect place…a beret on his bandaged, shaved head, white gloves on his hands, gun-metal casket with the American Flag draped over it and neatly folded back…oh he was so handsome, so strong…and I was so proud.
There is no sacrifice greater than that of a life. There is no greater loss than that of a life. There is nothing that makes one more proud than that of one’s life…the spectrum of emotion swings wide from one side to the other…from incredible sorrow to immense pride.
I had the privilege to be this brave young mans mom…to hold him and love him and teach him to walk and read, to teach him to love learning and to be curious about life and things…to have a heart of compassion and love people…it was my privilege to be part of that with him. He was a fine big brother…they all were rough and tumble together…challenging each other to be better than each other and themselves. He was a fine friend…as I’ve seen thru this last week…I think I’ve become mom to about 20 more kiddos, and they have been there everyday…especially 3 of them…
Today there will be a ceremony honoring him and his life…with pictures and music that reflect the many memories we all have of him…I know there will be tears everywhere…the presentation is wonderful…I had the honor of looking at it yesterday…it captures my angel so, so well…
Until I see you all again, thank you from the bottom of my heart for all the prayers, love and support…you have all shown amazing compassion to my boys and I…
Hold each other extra tight, see something wonderful in those you love, tell them about it…be safe and know that I love you all.
Anna
May he now rest in peace……………..and watch over his younger brothers
Bob, I’m truely sorry for your loss. Thanks for posting, as always.
Ted
Comment by ted — December 30, 2006 @ 3:10 am