Veteran’s Day

I wrote the following e-mail to my fellow Peace Corps Volunteers on Veteran’s Day. I figured some of my blog readers might enjoy it also.

It seems like a lifetime ago and a world away that I was wearing the uniform of our armed forces and yet on this day last year I was deployed to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. What a difference a year makes. When I think of Veteran’s I tend to think of my father and my uncles who served in Vietnam and my grandfathers who fought in World War II, but after wearing the uniform for more than ten-years and serving in Iraq and Afghanistan I suppose Veteran’s Day is for me as well. Today I can’t help but think of and pray for the soldiers in the mountains of Afghanistan, the sailors afloat in the Mediterranean, the marines on the ground in Iraq, and the airmen putting jets in the air around the world. I can’t help but remember the many men and women who have given their lives in defense of our nation.

And still I find myself today in Guatemala serving in the Peace Corps. Most people who find out for the first time I traded in my Air Force combat boots for Peace Corps Birkenstocks have some degree of astonishment. It was a very personal decision involving a sincere desire to work at the grassroots level in development and have a rich and deep cross-cultural experience. In the end I consider it a continuation of the same strain of service to our nation that I started when I was sworn into the Air Force.

Although I deployed to some austere locations, I consider myself fortunate to not have seen the face of war in the way that many members of our military do. I refer to them simply as heroes. Over the years I did have the opportunity to drink coffee with a Serbian man who was only a child when the war in Bosnia ended who nonetheless continued to have a deep rooted hatred for Muslims. I met Afghan Air Corps leaders who were working hard for a better and more secure country even though they had known nothing but brutal occupation in their lifetime. I found myself living on a base in Iraq receiving almost daily mortar and rocket attacks from local farmers who in desperation received a small sum of money from insurgents to light the fuse (and run). I heard stories from Koreans who have been separated from their families for more than two generations because of a tyrannical dictator. I have to question where these seeds of hatred come from and what can be done about it. I truly believe that improving the lives of people on an individual level, exposing others to American freedoms, and gaining a better understanding of how others live can have nothing but a positive affect on the world we live in today. That is exactly what we’re doing in Guatemala.

I find far more similarities than differences between the service I am doing now and the service I did in uniform. I found myself then and find myself now surrounded by motivated people who at their core want to make the world a better and safer place. People willing to make significant personal sacrifices. People who want to decrease human suffering and improve the lives of the less fortunate. We hear of decision makers who are hawks and of decision makers who are doves, but I believe war and peace are on more of a spectrum with a lot of ground in the middle. President Kennedy, the visionary of the Peace Corps, served with distinction as a Naval Officer in World War II and I think he understood this too.

Today is not about just or unjust wars, quagmires or long-term strategy, troop surges or withdrawals. Today we don’t talk about a Global War of Terrorism, low-intensity conflict, or nuclear proliferation in an unstable world. Today is purely about remembering the men and women who have served and are serving as soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines in our armed forces. I know of no collective body that wants to avoid conflict more than our men and women in uniform. And yet, when they are called to serve, when they are called to put their life on the line, they step forward and do so without hesitation.

I recognize that I’m not the first veteran to serve in the Peace Corps and I’m certain I won’t be the last. Over the years I encountered a number of returned Peace Corps Volunteers who were proudly serving in the Armed Forces. In my mind, they are now making peace in a different way. In my mind I’m still fighting for the same things I fought for when I wore the uniform in a different way.

I have seen war and I have seen peace and I can attest to the fact that peace is better. And while I’m thinking of my brothers and sisters in arms in faraway lands this Veteran’s Day I am proud to be here serving with my brothers and sister in peace. I hope all of you take a moment today to think of and honor the men and women who are serving and have served in our armed forces. If you have a friend in the military drop them an e-mail. If your mom, dad, uncle, or aunt served, give them a call and say thanks. That’s what today’s about.

Sincerely

Paul