CHARLESTON AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. –
Lately, when it comes to patriotism, I have been a scrooge.
Now, don't get me wrong ... I have a good foundation in respecting my fellow Airmen and the country I defend. It just hasn't been the top priority in my life until I recently compared it to the classic holiday tale written Charles Dickens, titled "A Christmas Carol."
I'm a father, husband, and 29-year-old staff sergeant who seems to not have enough hours in a day to do half of the things I need to do. I came to a point in my life where I was so focused on my family and setting personal goals that being in the Air Force just became, well, a day job. People in my flight would volunteer for base and squadron functions, while I would dodge them thinking it were more important to get a few more hours to myself.
After the tragic events at Fort Hood, I feel the news media was very patriotic and concerned for their country, but at the time, I felt their patriotism was quite insincere. "Where was this patriotism a week ago?" I asked myself. I could never understand the "Support the Troops" decals. "What about support our troops?" I would say. Was I a worn out airman, or maybe just someone who needed to be re-blued?
I was a scrooge who badly needed to be visited by three ghosts.
One night not too long ago, I kept tossing and turning, asking myself those questions when it dawned on me the parallels to the Dickens story.
First, I thought about what the ghost of patriotisms past would be like. A young, battered Vietnam-era soldier came to mind, guiding me through our past conflicts. The voyage would begin with the trenches and busy medical tents of World War I, the blood-stained sand at Utah Beach, the cold blistering nights in Korea. Then, I would be swept away to when I was a young child, seeing my mother cry while reading letters my dad wrote when he was away in Kuwait and Iraq.
Second, the ghost of patriotisms present appeared. I envision the spirit of my former flight commander, Maj. Rodolpho Rodriguez. Major Rodriguez was tragically killed in September 2008 when a truck bomb exploded in a hotel in Pakistan. I imagined him showing me the wonderful achievements we have made in Iraq, to include the bridges, homes and schools we have built for the Iraqi people.
The major would then show me the number of lives lost by the courageous military members who died to keep the roads free from bombs and improvised explosive devices in Afghanistan. Major Rodriguez then would return me home, after showing me the love, pride and true patriotism mothers and fathers have for their sons and daughters who are in harm's way.
Finally, there stood the ghost of patriotisms future. I visualized the same apparition in Dickens' book, a faceless grim reaper. What he reveals is questionable, and I believe it is up to me and the thousands of other American service members to decide where our patriotism will lay and what our future will hold.
Just like Ebenezer Scrooge at the end of "A Christmas Carol," I have changed my tune. I firmly believe you must respect the past, acknowledge the present and be prepared for the future to have a firm foundation of patriotism.