In case you haven’t noticed, there are a series of Hometown Hero banners flying from light posts throughout the mountain communities, recognizing local residents who have served or are currently serving our country in various branches of the armed forces. These colorful banners have been placed by the mountain chapter of a nationwide organization dedicated to honoring not only the sons and daughters who have served, but also those who have been wounded or have died in the service of their country.
The Blue Star Moms are to be commended for their efforts to honor their sons and daughters, if I do say so myself. For me to say this is a bit awkward, for I am an ardent opponent of war in general and all forms of violence in particular.
My penchant for non-violence dates back to the 1960s when I was an anti-war activist, a title I acquired during my five years of training at Chapman College (now Chapman University). Yes, I was one of those long-haired “peace creeps” – come to think of it, I still am. But I feel like I’m in good company. As you may recall there was another long-haired dude about 2,000 years ago who said, “Blessed are the peacemakers…” By the way, one can actually earn a BA degree in Chapman’s Peace Studies program.
Despite my proclivity for non-violence, I have mellowed over the years to point where I have compassion for all the sons and daughters who’ve been sent into harm’s way – usually by old men who’ve never been in combat. That long-haired fellow who roamed the planet 2,000 years ago also said, “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.”
I must have led a sheltered life because I know very few people who have served in the military, fewer yet who have been in a war. One of those was my dad, who served in France during WWI. But he never really talked about the war because it only made him mad.
Our dad, he was a gentleman when we all worked at the store. The only time I saw him mad was when he talked about the war. We lost a boy at Belleau Wood, and I guess he never really understood what the medals from the president were for. (“Oldest Living Son” – John Stewart – 1970)
As it turns out, I did know two young men whose images appear on Hometown Hero banners. The first was Army PFC Donald Mitchell of Crestline who perished in a “Blackhawk Down” incident at Fort Irwin in 1990. Donald was on a BMX racing team I sponsored back in the 1980s. The other was Army National Guard Sgt. Eric Holke, also from Crestline, who died in 2007 in a Humvee accident in Iraq. Eric was a gentle soul who was in a summer school class I taught at Rim High in the early 90s.
She read to me the letter turning yellow in the light, read to me the letter now engraved upon her sight. I believe she almost hears a bugle in the night, waiting for her hero from the war. She’s been waiting now twenty years or more. (“Hero From the War” – John Stewart – 1970)
Keep those banners flyin,’
Uncle Mott
0 Comments