My father was a veteran who was wounded in the war. He was an amputee and suffered from what we now call PTSD.
As a first generation American, that son of Italian immigrants, never considered himself “disabled” and always felt proud that he served. He loved the United States. In his later years, he served a commander of the local American Legion. He had his ups and downs, and as his daughter, I often watched him suffer – from people asking questions about his missing arm, children who were afraid of him because of it, the pain that resulted from the prosthesis he wore every work day. And all that doesn’t even scratch the surface about the pain he experienced when he got flashbacks of battle scenes.
Take time out today to thank someone who has fought so you can be free. Last year’s Victorious Woman Honorees were “the Janeys” – military women who fought fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan. If you missed it, here it is again: http://www.victoriouswoman.com/Files/Janey.Women%20Soldiers.pdf
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