All Gave Some...Some Gave All

Support Our Troops

This is an excellent tribute to all of those who have served in the Global War on Terrorism. This is a war that will go on and one that we must endure if we wish our way of life to survive the trials that we face. The enemy will not run away, they will not capitulate, nor will they offer a cease-fire ot truce.

All gave something of themselves during this war. Some lost brothers, sisters and friends in the Twin Towers. Some lost parents and friends in the Pentagon. Those of us who have been to war realize the sacrifice and the horror that lies in the battlefield in a way that only the veteran can only know it or understand it. It is something that will stay with us forever. Truly, all gave some. I don't think there is anyone who has not been touched by the War, whether it be from the opening days in September, 2001, or in the mountains of Afghanistan, in the deserts of Iraq, or the coastal deserts of Djibouti as part of Combined/Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa. All have said "I have a friend in Iraq..." "I lost a brother in Afghanistan..." "My father died in the North Tower..." "My supervisor just got called up..."

This is war that is like none other. Unlike other wars, this is a war that for three years we have endured, and none have been left behind. Unhurt, wounded, or dead, all of our fallen soldiers, sailors, Marines and airmen have come home to rest in their native soil. None have been left behind with families and friends left to wonder about them. There is no legacy of Missing in Action, or POWs that have never been recovered. In a way, we have come full circle to such a place where the valor, the comraderie and the faith of those warriors who remain engaged would never allow a fellow serviceman to be left behind.

And while all have given some, there are those who gave all. These brave and intrepid warriors have laid their lives on the altar of freedom, offering themselves up as a supreme sacrifice in the name of something that cannot be touched, felt, smelled or tasted - FREEDOM. Some may have joined to get of the streets. Others may have enlisted to help pay for school. Others still may have joined because of family tradition. But no matter the reason at the beginning of their journey, all of these are now laid to rest in the fields of green, where they will not grow old, nor will they face physical ailments. They will be whole - and young - once again. The only thing that will assuage the pain and feeling of sorrow for those who survived, leaving behind dead on the field battle, will be in the knowledge that we persevered and did not run or hide in the face of the enemy.

Our mission, as those who have survived, who have reaped the harvest of their ultimate sacrifice, should be to live in such a way, everyday, that is worthy of the sacrifice that they had laid down for us. Then, and only then, will we be worthy enough to be called brothers...

I called you up to say "How are you?"
There's nothing else on my mind
It's been a year since I last saw you
I think about you al the time

Well the many miles that lie between us
They get more distant day to day
The situation that we've found ourselves in
We never wanted it this way

As I cross the sands in this foreign land
My duty's calling me away from my California home
As I know the reasons we're apart
Are truly hard to see
But understand that I can't give up on my country
So darlin', don't give up on me

I called you up to say "I miss you"
I got your letter yesterday
You mailed some pictures of our family
They're something dear from far away

Oh, and please tell mom and dad I love them
That I'm doing all right
Cause the true heroes are the ones we leave behind
They pray for us will all their might

As I cross the sands in this foreign land
My duty's calling me away from my California home
As I know the reasons we're apart
Are truly hard to see
But understand that I can't give up on my country
So darlin', don't give up on me


For those who will never grow old with us...