I haven't realized it but I haven't been fully myself until recently. For some reason I had shut down emotionally for a while. I had thought that phase of my life was over. I think it was all the vacationing and being back from my travels that gave me an emotional high. I know what you are saying, how can I get an emotional high if I've shut down my emotions? It isn't the extreme things that don't get felt it is the day to day stuff. I had a bit of trouble handling it. But now I'm doing pretty well processing and getting use to feeling things on a daily basis. It makes me feel like my old self again. Then again what is my old self? Can I really call it my "self" if it has been so long? Or how about if I intentionally do things that make me not that way, can I still consider that a part of my identity? Things I have to figure out I suppose. The one thing I have noticed is that feelings and emotions do need to be expressed and process or otherwise they tend to control you much more than is healthy or functional.
On that note I would like to express something that has been bothering me as of late. I feel that I lack the experience and credentials to talk for the American soldier. However I do feel that I can make some assertions as to how the American soldier is treated and really viewed in our society. In general I think our culture and the people in it are a bunch of hypocrites when it comes to soldiers. On one hand we praise them for fighting for the most important things in our country, we constantly shower them with the words of gratitude, and we consider these people honorable and heroes. On further examination our view isn't really that simple. What I see in day to day life of soldiers is that the appreciation for what they do is largely lip service. Constantly they are told what they do is great and of noble worth, but when it affects the personal lives of civilians all that hero stuff and noble values stuff goes out the window. Once common example is when a soldier is talked about people say yeah he is a real good guy. They mention how they really respect what he is doing and how it takes a real man/woman to do the things he is doing and to make the sacrifices he is making. Then the soldier does the dating bit. Then all those great things and wonderful choices which exemplify selfless service becomes mud in the eyes of people. It is hard for him to find a woman. When he does find a woman, she is constantly told what a mistake it is being with a man that would choose such a life; how selfish he is in not leaving the military behind. Thing is good people make decisions that require real sacrifice. These real sacrifices give us the benefits of society and social change we enjoy. However it just seems that we never want to be affected by the sacrifice in any way but to enjoy it and say we appreciate it. So let us heap our burdens on the backs of the few and stone them if their bruised backs need healing. No matter how much we say we respect these people, we don't. One cannot claim to have virtue when one is never given a choice to choose between one thing or the other. So what does that say about us when we are actually given a choice we chose to not be the very thing we say we respect?
3 comments:
I think it comes down to a couple of things: People don't really think before they open their mouth. They don't really think what they are going to say. Then sometimes I think they forget that what they might want or what they consider the lifestyle they want isn't the same as what others want.
My youngest brother is in the Army and its been interesting seeing how friends and family react to his choice.
I agree with people talking before they think observation. I also think it gives a pretty good window into what people are really like though.
Army life is weird and when I watch members of the armed forces (especially army guys and marines) they are definately in a diffrent world. I was just reading the Iliad not to long ago and the intro for the book talked about how war forces us to face things. I don't think it is a deliberate choice, but I do see a lot of value battles that have nothing to do with war because of it. It is odd how it plays out with family, friends and community.
Wish your brother well, he's a stud in my book, just like Mr. Rogers and George Washington.
I think it comes down to people being sheep. In Vietnam, the anti-war biggot public shunned soldiers and it was terrible. So, they've recognized this, and to avoid guilt, they are sending a strong message of paying the lip-service you have mentioned, to which their impressionable hordes everywhere pay homage.
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