Veterans Day

I just checked the outside temperature, and we're down to 45 degrees (wind chill of 38!)......that's down 14 degrees from mid morning. Yes indeedy, it is November!!

It was a wonderful weekend. The weather both days was relatively warm and sunny. On Saturday Mom and I took a nice drive to Eldon, Missouri (a little over two hours) for the 50^th wedding anniversary of a former neighbor. She was a student of Mom's in the one-room school for two years, and I was her first piano student. It was a wonderful time, and they were to shocked and happy to see us. I was so glad we were able to go.

I find myself being a little retrospective as we honor our veterans today. We owe so much to so many who put their lives on the line. I grew up hearing the stories of World War II from my dad. He went into the Army in 1940 and was in for the duration of the war. I know he spent some time in Europe early on, but he rarely talked about that. The latter part of his military career was spent in northwestern Canada, building the Al-Can Highway. I enjoyed not only the stories from there, but also looking at the photos that had been taken.

Both of Dad's brothers were also in the Army during World War II. One served in Italy, and the other in France and Germany. Our local Courthouse has a listing of all county soldiers who served in World War II on the walls of the second level, and I always enjoy finding their names.

Mom's brothers were a little younger, but the older one went into the Navy as soon as he graduated high school in 1943. He did some training at a Navy base in Farragut, Idaho, and ended up serving on the Aleutian Islands. Mom has photos of him, and he looked very snappy in his Navy uniform. His fiancee worked at a munitions plant in Kansas. The other brother was too young for the regular service, so he joined the Merchant Marines. He later went into the Army and served during the Korean War.

Hubby was in the Army for three years after he graduated from high school. He spent time at Fort Niagara, New York, as well as Camp Casey, South Korea – the DMZ. He finished up at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri.

More recently, my son spent six years with the Missouri National Guard. We're very fortunate that he didn't end up in the Middle East.

With the typhoon hitting the Philippines this past week, I'm anxious to hear news from there. Hubby's father was shot down over New Guinea during World War II, and he's buried in the American Military Cemetery in Manila. So far I haven't heard if there was damage to the cemetery, but we hope it's safe.

I'm thankful for all the people who have sacrificed over the years in the military service. And I'm thankful we have this day to honor them.