September 11th always holds quite a bit of emotion for me, both good and bad.  That day was a roller coaster for my family.

Sadly this year, every where that I went it seemed more like any other day.  Even I had wanted to put up several flags in my front yard, but my plans never materialized.

All I can say, is Thank you to all who have defended the freedoms we cherish in this country and all I can do is hold my family a little tighter and love them a little more.

Okay, so I don’t usually rant and rave about Politics.  I have opinions, but a lot of the time I keep them to myself or share them sparingly.  It’s just who I am, and I think that it’s mostly because I hate the current state, which I see as mostly finger pointing and name calling and not enough problem solving.  Which usually throws logic and reason out the window.

There’s been a lot in the media lately about the speech delivered by President Obama this morning to the school children throughout the country.  It’s caused quite an uproar, which I think is ridiculous.

I completely agreed with my friend Nichole’s comments here (and even my own response to her post).  What a great chance to talk to your children and to this schools that opted out.  Your students missed out on a great chance to hear the President of the United States speaking directly to them, the youth of America.

You can see the text of his speech here (looks pretty controversial doesn’t it?).

I’m so thankful for places like Lexington and Concord, Gettysburg, Pearl Harbor and Arlington.

Thank you to all of the Men and Women who have provided and protected the freedoms that we continue to enjoy in this great country today.

I’m especially grateful to those for whom I’m able to call my friends and family, one of which is my Grandfather in the photo below, who have served.  You all know who you are.  Whether I tell you directly or indirectly (such as posts like this one), please know how much my family and I appreciate your service, whether you are currently serving or it was many decades ago.

I remember sitting in front of the TV on day that the US went into Iraq in 1991 listening to the reports of what was happening.  Hearing about the jets and were leading the attacks and that they were doing this to bring freedom to the Kuwaiti people.

I wished that I could be there.  Secretly I’ve always wished that I could serve in the military and defend this great country myself, but due to some physical limitations they would never have taken me.  So my whole life I’ve sat on the sidelines and watched the rest of you with pride.

So Thank You for your service.

If only I could borrow the Delorean, I’d high tail it to Gettysburg, PA and punch in the date of June 30, 1863.

I’m not sure that it would have been possible to just watch and not been thrust into action, but it would have been cool and yet heartbreaking to have been able to see and hear history in the making.

I guess that I’ll have to settle for watching the Hollywood version.

Some of these tidbits from the Civil War are great.