Memorial Day

I went to the Memorial Day parade with my parents in my hometown this past monday. During the parade, they had two fighter jets fly overhead a couple of times- pretty low, too. It gave me goosebumps. As I watched 3 hummers go by with military police inside, I was struck by something. Most of the men and women in the hummers were around my age and younger. It was in that moment that I realized Memorial Day has taken on a more significant meaning for me. The Iraq war is really the only war that has such a huge impact on my generation. Sure, there was the gulf war, but I was about 9 when that ended. I was too young to understand the implications of war. But the Iraq war, that's a different story. I know people who have been killed. I know people who have served in the war or are currently serving. While my view on war is complicated, nevertheless the troops need our prayers and support. As I sat watching that parade, it just struck me how big this war is. In my opinion, it's going to be a long time before peace is established. Did people really think it was as simple as going in to Iraq, killing the terrorist, turning their government into a democratic one, and then pull out? Of course it's not that simple! The tie between government and Islam is deeply rooted in the Iraqi land. Of course this isn't simple and of course the war is going to go on for quite some time. How long has it been? Over 5 years? I wouldn't say I'm an extreme pacifist, but I do think that maybe the U.S. government should have re-thought how they were going to handle this situation a little bit more before acting.

At any rate, we can pray. We can do whatever it takes to support our troops and what they are standing for. They are fighting for this country and we need to support them, whether we agree with the war or not. We can also pray for the Iraqi people and the Afghani people and everyone who is being affected by this war. Pray for peace, for God's power to reign supreme. Just pray....