Operation Homelife Serving Gratitude

Serving Gratitude

by Krysta Murray Along with some cool air and cozy sweaters, November brings us two holidays for reflection and gratefulness; Veterans Day and Thanksgiving. As a military family, both of these holidays bring us something to reflect upon each year.

My husband is still uber humble about his military service. He doesn’t bring attention to it even when it’s deserved. Recently he was promoted and he wanted it to just fly under the radar like it was no big deal, like in nearly 16 years of service he hadn’t earned it. I finally had to ask him to please do a ceremony, let us pin you and celebrate and recognize your achievements. So I grabbed my crutches and made my way over and changed out his collar device, while my son did the other, and we took pictures together as a family, smiling beneath our masks. If anyone realizes the hard work a service member puts in, the

sacrifices they make, it’s the family that supports them.

There are so many goodbyes, welcome homes, missed holidays, events, time apart and moves with a military career. There’s training, education, qualifications and many long days of standing watch or duty. Yet many service members will shrug and say, “Well, I get paid, it’s my job, I volunteered for this.”

But there is more to it than that. Time they can’t get back no matter how much money they make. And last I checked, I don’t know any service members that struck it rich through military service. There are also physical and mental workloads they take on. Arduous duties and a willingness to put their country first. On top of that, without a volunteer force, it would be mandatory. It’s one of those “someone’s gotta do it” type situations, and yeah, that may downplay it, but if you think about it, someone is doing it. Because of the service of some, others don’t have to give of themselves to the military . Often this can lead to an under appreciation of what one doesn’t understand or have gone through themselves. So the fact we have days like Veterans Day really has significance, lest we forget the type of job and responsibilities these service members have or have done.

I’m not sure how many times my husband has actually been “home” or even stateside on Veterans Day. It’s just par for the course really. But if he is, I am always encouraging him to go enjoy the recognition, because we are proud of him.

I am fortunate enough to see both sides. I myself did not grow up with service members in my family. I knew very little of this lifestyle. Now that I know it, I feel better for it. As hard as it is, as much as our child may not understand it, we’re all better for it. So we definitely appreciate it when someone else can be grateful for their service.

That’s what makes November wonderful. It’s a time for being thankful, for being glass half full even when not everything is the best. It’s been a tough year for all of us. November for me also includes knee surgery. The way I see it, that also means the beginning of recovery and as much as I do not look forward to surgery, once it’s done I can only progress from there to get back to full strength. I really can’t wait to get back to my pre-injury level.

As we approach an upcoming new year, we count our blessings and seek hope in the new year.

Bay Books Book Club Corner

What books people are reading…

Sea Stories - My Life in the Special Operations

By Adm. William H. McRaven McRaven’s first book “Make Your Bed” sold over a million copies and he is back, detailing some of his most famous missions as a Navy SEAL and commander of America’s Special Operations Forces, along with valuable life lessons. “Sea Stories” reads as a thriller, but offers that touch of humor that is McRaven.

The Vanishing Half

By Brit Bennett In her second novel, with rights already sold to HBO, Bennett focuses on identical and inseparable twin girls who grow up in a small southern town. They ultimately run away together, but each chooses a different path, one black and one white. The intricate plot entwines their lives, as well as their daughter’s lives, and how they explore their relationship.

Green Lights

By Matthew McConaughey Matthew McConaughey, Academy Award® winning actor, shares his journey of his first 50 years in an honest, forthright manner. He’s not afraid to share his stories of failures along with his successes, his sorrows and his joys, his goal to be a good man, always looking for the “state of success” he calls “catching green lights.”

The Luckiest Man: Life with John McCain

By Mark Salter Salter was one of McCain’s trusted friends and confidants, who cowrote seven books with him. Here he covers the major events of McCain’s life, showing a side to him the public rarely saw. From his childhood, time in the military and later as a senator, this candid remembrance shows McCain’s true moral character and patriotism.