Today is Veterans Day. Dan and I are veterans of the Vietnam era. He was an Air Force navigator, and I was in the Navy JAG Corp. While our experiences were very different, we are both proud to have served. We are especially humbled to know many service members who have given a very significant portion of their lives, and even some, their very lives, to serve our nation.
Veterans day was first instituted as Armistice Day, remembering the armistice of World War I, which began on 11/11/18, at ll:00 a.m. It was later expanded to honor the veterans of all wars. I join with you in offering appreciation to all who have served in the armed services, and to those who still serve.
Veterans’ service is not only to our nation. It is for peace, security and prosperity throughout the world. It is on behalf of the most noted to the very humblest of all of God’s children. Those who have served in harm’s way deserve our most reverent respect.
As I have lived around and associated with service members, I have become more appreciative of the great service their families render. Military families get uprooted frequently. As the service members are away on assignment, spouses double parenting efforts; children have to make great compensations for the absence of a parent; parents and siblings and boyfriends and girlfriends have greater cares and concerns, and their lives are significantly altered.
I am thrilled with acts of consideration and appreciation for service members that I witness at airports and other public places. I am touched to hear prayers for the protection and well-being of faithful women and men who serve in dangerous and trying circumstances. I join in my private contemplation and prayers, the supplication for the families who have lost the companionship of our troops for a time, or even permanently.
I wish there were an armistice from all military conflicts. I wish there were an armistice from social and political conflicts. I wish that the toils, sacrifices, blood and very lives of veterans would bring immediate peace, understanding and unity to people everywhere. I am unlikely to ever realize these wishes, but we can all make a greater effort to bring unity and peace into our daily encounters, which could eventually expand to regional, national and international progress.
Thank you, to all veterans, to veterans’ families and friends, and to all who seek the peace and security of all our fellow beings.
Contributed by MH Mesa, Phoenix and Scottsdale Estate Planning Attorney and Partner Theron M. Hall, Jr.
- Estate Planning Tips for Solo Seniors - November 17, 2023
- Inheritance Planning: Have You Considered Digital Assets? - November 16, 2023
- Estate Administration: Executor vs. Trustee Roles and Considerations - November 15, 2023
Leave a Reply