Wars and elections are both too big and too small to matter in the long run. The daily work - that goes on, it adds up. Barbara KingsolverThis morning, Maureen over at Writing without Paper is the guest at Katdish's blog, Hey Look, A chicken! Her piece is about resolutions -- or rather intentions. One man's intention to live after having been the victim of a bomb exploding beneath his truck while serving his 3rd mission in Iraq with US forces. It is powerful, disturbing and moving.
After watching the video she linked to on Staff Sgt. Robert Henline, I clicked on a three part series on Canadians in Afghanistan. Filmed in 2007, the documentary tells of Platoon 22's exploits in a small outpost 120 miles from Kandahar.
On Wednesday, December 30, Calgary Herald Reporter, Michelle Lang died alongside four Canadian soldiers, Pt. Garrett Chidley, Cpl. Zachery McCormack, Sgt. George Miok, Sgt. Kirck Taylor. They are four of 138 Canadian soldiers who have given up their lives in Afghanistan since 2002.
We call it a mission. A conflict. A 'military effort'. We do not call it war.
No matter what we call it, our intention to 'build today for a better tomorrow', as Sgt. Kirk Taylor, one of the fallen soldiers, wrote in a letter before leaving for his mission in Afghanistan, is leaving families without those they love. On both sides of the conflict.
Michelle Lang was the first Canadian journalist to be killed while covering Canada's military efforts in Afghanistan. May she be the last.
In a footnote to the Canadian Forces story of Platoon 22 in Afghanistan. I leave you with this video: A pictorial tribute to Canadian soldiers killed in Afghanistan.
Their intent was to create a world of peace. In their passing, may they know peace. May their loved ones be resolved to be of gentle heart.
4 comments:
I am moved to tears watching this video. So much lost. Some of these men are my son's age (21); some younger. But for a tripwire, a blast, a firefight across a bomb-pocked mountain, we would never know their stories they carry in their eyes. May we never forget their stories, their faces, what we've all lost with their going.
That was exactly my thought as I watched the video as well, Maureen. These young men are the same age as my daughters. So many youth lost. So many stories to be told that will never unfold. One of the young men, Nathan Hornburg, was a school mate of Alexis. I hadn't seen him since Grade 4. It was sad to see him again in the paper when they announced his death. So much promise lost.
Your blog keeps getting better and better! Your older articles are not as good as newer ones you have a lot more creativity and originality now keep it up!
Thank you for your encouragement! I tend to agree with you. The constant writing improves my writing and loosens up my creativity!
Hugs.
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