A 492-word article written by Kim Clark. Kim is the mother of a veteran who loved his country and was willing to lay his life down for the freedoms in which he believed. She is the Founder and CEO of The DeMarco Project, a non-profit organization. Her life’s mission is to save veteran lives and improve the quality of life for traumatized military service persons. If you would like to support her in this work, please donate to www.TheDeMarcoProject.org or The DeMarco Project Facebook page.
PREVIEW:
Recently, in a conversation with a friend, the topic of trust came up. We move through our day responding based on “historical data,” so to speak. For example, if you tripped as a child and those around you responded with concern for your well-being, you tend to move through life feeling safe and “cared for.” However, if those around you laugh and pointed fingers and made negative comments about you for not seeing the object you tripped over, you felt shame and not cared for, you are likely to move through life feeling… not so good about yourself.
For this writer, the thought carried over to my work with veterans. Those who serve in the military make a great sacrifice. As civilians, we will never truly understand what they experienced. However, this writer believes we have the responsibility to decide if we are committed to helping veterans through the rough spots. We must commit to not baling out when the going gets tough.
Am I suggesting you stay for abuse? Absolutely not. What I am suggesting is being committed to helping a veteran through the rough spots.
Our veterans, warriors, do battle to ensure those of us who do not have the same fighting spirit, their willingness to go into combat… enjoy living, laughing, sleeping, resting, and having freedom of speech, continue to live free.
We trust these brave individuals will die for us. This writer believes these warriors should be able to trust that the citizens of this nation are here to help them through the dark moments, dreams, and whatever else they must forever live through.