Well, nearly a month ago now, I met a guy named Chris. He is in the United States Navy aboard the USS Dwight D Eisenhower. You see, his brother dates my cousin and we just sorta started emailing. Ever since then we have been emailing and just talking. He is a really nice guy.

He is in the Weapons Department (G-3) on board the ship. Currently, he is on deployment in the Arabian Sea. (That’s about all I can say due to security reasons.) They have been over there for nearly two years. And they are due to come back home to Norfolk, VA, at the end of May.

Now if you don’t know me, then you may not understand why I am so proud of Chris. I have always grown up with a love of the military. I loved the planes and ships and guns and all. Growing up, we would always watch war movies and I grew to love our soldiers, past and present.

My dad was in the Army during the Vietnam War. He served in Army Intelligence over in Okinawa, Japan, doing plain-clothes secret missions. My grandfather was a Navy Seabee for many years then was in the naval reserves for a while as well. My other grandfather was in the Army during WWII and was at Pearl Harbor right after the bombing. All of his brothers also fought in the military during the war. His wife-to-be, my grandmother, had three brothers who all fought in WWII, one of whom was killed on Iwo Jima.

So you can see why I am so big on military. I have grown up with a love for it. At a young age, my brother used to draw fighter jets and tanks and such. We were all just really into it.

Last year my brother’s best friend died in a car bomb in Iraq. He was a Marine and was a really good guy. It was a sad time for all of us.

So, why am I saying all this? Why am I taking time to remember painful memories? Because freedom isn’t free. Americans today are so drunk with freedom that they do not see the price that others are paying to give them those freedoms. They do not appreciate all that the Chris’s and Tim’s of the military are going through. They do not appreciate all that our veterans have gone through. I can’t imagine being stuck in the middle of a humid, rainy jungle with all kinds of poisonous animals everywhere, always jerking around to see if an enemy soldier was going to drop from the jungle ceiling to kill you.

I am so thankful for those who have fought for my freedom and for those who are still fighting. Thank you all. And thank you to the families and friends who endure extended periods of time away from their soldier so they can serve their country. I respect you guys more than you know. Thank you so much.

I will never take my freedom for granted. I will salute our flag and sing the star-spangled banner. I will salute in respect as a soldier passes. I will cry when a soldier dies. I will love this country until I die. I will always be proud to be an American.