BY DANI TIETZ
dani@sjodaily.com
It is always a solemn morning.
No matter what the weather, how many people show up or what is said, lingering over Memorial Day, there is always someone missing as we gather to reflect on what America has been and what it is becoming.
This year’s ceremonies on May 27 were no different.
Dozens of people gathered at local ceremonies, pausing for just a moment to honor those who served, are serving and those who never returned to their loved ones and to their homes.
After attending two ceremonies, I returned home, flipping through Facebook, only to find myself in question the rest of the day.
A post read, “If you want to thank our military, be the kind of American worth fighting for.”
It’s one of those posts you can’t disagree with. Yes, let’s all be the type of American worth fighting for. Then, the question for me becomes what is the type of American worth fighting for?
Is it the American who promotes only the goodness in the world? Or is it the one who sees injustice and works to fight to right the wrongs? Is the American worth fighting for the one who goes to church? Or the one who volunteers their time?
Could the American worth fighting for be the one who donates large sums of money to charities, yet overcharges their customers? Or is it the one who sits homeless on the street, wondering where his or her next meal will come from?
Are the ones worth fighting for the teachers? The students? The parents? The governors or the governed? The ones who are 100-percent honest all the time or the ones who show you what they want you to see on social media and then lead a completely different life behind the scenes?
Are they the ones who dress nice and act nice yet throw a friend to the side at a whim, or the ones who have a few friends, but are loyal? Are they the Americans who have never committed a crime or those who bend the law here and there, but never make it behind bars?
Is it one President over another? Are the ones worth fighting for the ones who aren’t racist, bigots, homophobes, or are they the ones who only look another up and down to see if they measure up to a standard?
And who gets to decide?
Who gets to say that this is someone worth fighting for while someone else is not? Who sets the standards? And more importantly, is there anyone who actually lives up to those standards?
Maybe it was just a general call to Americans: do right, all of you; we have men and women out there fighting so that you can do, say, think and live as you please. If you really want to give back to them, then pause to think about how you are living your life. Does it reflect a human being worth fighting for?
I guess what struck me the most is that my daughter’s boyfriend will return to base this week to fight for everyone, no matter what. He may or may not agree with everyone’s life choices, but that’s not what he’s actually fighting for. He’s there to ensure that everyone can make those choices; because that is something worth fighting for.
