Humbled

I am feeling very humbled and thankful today for our heroes who fought, and in many cases- died, for our country to make us free.

My grandpa was one of those brave heroes. He was a sharp-shooter in New Guinea in WWII. On a very dangerous mission, he had to act as a decoy to a Japanese army troop. He made them chase him through the jungle until he reached the edge of a high cliff where he jumped off, plunging into the choppy ocean below where a boat awaited him. He hurt his knees very badly when he landed in the water, and could very easily have been killed by the Japanese.

I am grateful to my grandpa for being so brave in the face of almost certain death. He was always a very jolly and happy kind of guy and I loved him very much!

I once had the opportunity to walk the grounds of a famous battle in the Revolutionary war in Cow Pens, South Carolina. It was a spot where the story could have turned out very differently for our soldiers. The British soldiers were well fed, well dressed, well armed. The American soldiers were tired, starved, and ill-prepared to go up against the British. That day the fog was heavy at times and cold and damp. When the order was shouted to charge,they got mixed up and only some groups began to charge, some waited back- not having heard the message. Suddenly, a heavy fog rolled in as the British troops advanced to fight the charging soldiers. Things were in commotion as people tried to see. Finally, the other groups got the message to charge and closed in, only to find the British soldiers had advanced further than they had thought. Because of this "mistake" the British were now surrounded on all sides by the American soldiers.

Many men died that day, but due to a strange and obviously Heavenly guiding hand, this battle became the turning point for the colonists on the American continent. As I walked those grounds I was placing my feet on the very soil where brave men gave their lives for our freedom. It was very humbling to know that men so long ago died so I could be standing there, a free American.

Thank you to all the brave souls who have fought for my freedoms. I will endeavor to deserve what you have done for me!