Happy Veterans Day!

Lonely MRAP provides perimeter security

Veterans' Day was originally known as Armistice Day. It was a day set aside to honor the fallen of the Great War of 1914-1918 in which the youth of Europe were slaughtered in the muddy mire of trench warfare. The armistice that ended the war went into effect on "the eleventh minute of the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month" of 1918. On that minute the guns fell silent. The Allied Nations later all began commemorating that moment through the celebration of Armistice Day. After another great war shook the globe - World War II - many countries changed the name of Armistice Day to Remembrance Day to honor the fallen of both of these great conflicts. In the United States the name was changed to Veterans' Day in order to honor all who had served both past and present. Since World War II, the United States has added many more to the honored roles of those who have served. Korea, Vietnam, Operation Urgent Fury, Panama, and Operation Desert Storm added millions more names to the list of those who had served our Nation's wars. When the World Trade Center and Pentagon were attacked on September 11, 2001, it heralded an entirely new wave of Veterans who would serve in Afghanistan and Iraq. I knew my life would change forever when the Twin Towers fell. I was right. I'm now part of a unique breed of Veterans. We have served on multiple tours to both Iraq and Afghanistan in a conflict that has now spanned over a decade. This will be my fourth Veterans' Day spent in a combat zone, in the heart of a war. I am not alone. I am here with some of the best of the best our Nation has ever produced. Together we stand proud to serve and know a bond to each other that many others will never know. We serve for each other.

As with other holidays we are used to celebrating back home, today is just another day for us. While we take the time to wish one another well, we have a job to do that takes priority. At the same time, I have never seen anyone show bitterness of knowing our friends and family back home have a day off to celebrate. Instead, we are just thankful that our loved ones back home have the opportunity to enjoy today. It is heartwarming to know they are thinking of us. If anything, our morale is always the highest on days like today. As for me? I am thankful for the long tradition of service my family has rendered. I'm just the latest in a long line of those who have served in wartime dating all the way back to the Revolutionary War. It's almost second nature. Even while I am here in Bagram I have a nephew who is also spending this Veterans' Day with his Army comrades in a designated combat zone. I'm sure he is enjoying today sharing the same sentiments we all have in this situation. Both of us also managed to get a phone call in yesterday to my Marine Dad to wish him happy 238th birthday of the United States Marine Corps. Yes, service runs in our blood.

So on this day I wish everyone back home a Happy Veterans' Day from Afghanistan. Enjoy today and raise your glasses to all of my comrades past and present. Do so knowing that we've got your back always. Our Nation will always remain free so long as we have heroes such as those I've served with who stand ready to guard the ramparts when we are threatened. It's business as usual here in Bagram but we never forget what today is all about. All we ask is that folks back home never forget what today is about either. Never forget and we will celebrate many Veterans' Days together to come.