It’s Memorial Day weekend. Let’s take just a minute to not think about the politics of the war, the politics of politics, whether or not the Attorney General should step down, why gas prices are so high, and who will win the Indy 500.
Let’s spend just a minute thinking about our young men and women fighting the War on Terrorism, especially those who have fallen in the pursuit of freedom.
I helped bury Major Fernando (Nando) Ribas and Captain Paul Lorence in April 1986. I worked with them. I flew with them. They were my friends.
They were killed on the Libya raid. One Monday morning they woke up, put on their flight suits, kissed their wives goodbye and went off to a "base exercise". Neither one told their spouses they were going into combat on what would be, and still is, the longest fighter mission ever.
They never came home. Twenty four hours later, at a little before 6:00 AM, Carol and I were knocking on Diana Lorence’s front door – the toughest mission I ever had.
However, Libya never raised its terrorist head again.
So, take a moment this weekend to think about the Nandos and Pauls you knew. Say a prayer for their families. Say another prayer, if you will, that we have young men and women who lay their life on the line for this country and our safety.
Ask the Big Guy, whoever your Big Guy is, to keep them safe.
Picture: Wabash Mall, May 2007.
