I just realized something while watching The West Wing episode in which there is a military funeral complete with a gun salute. The sound of a three-volley salute breaks my heart a little every time I hear it. Even for a fictional character.
The first funeral I attended after Aiden passed away was that of my maternal grandfather. He was a veteran and was given military honors including the gun salute. This was, of course, a rough time for me, and that gun salute broke the thread of self control I had left at that point and left me sobbing. . There are so many things tied up in it for me that I strongly suspect that I'll never hear a gun salute without a tear coming to my eyes. And honestly, I'm okay with that. It may not be much, but it will always remind me that those who sacrifice themselves for our protection deserve our respect. It also reminds me that for every person who receives the honor of our tears, there are hundreds, or thousands who we will never know, but will be missed and cried for by someone.
Military or otherwise, there are so many people who give up something to make us each who we are today... parents, teachers, friends, family and even strangers. If there's something that makes you stop and think of them, even for a moment, you should embrace that and treasure it. Am I the only one, or is there something that always stops you and turns your thoughts around?
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