I am back from my trip to Alabama and am trying to catch up on things. I'm more worried about catching up in personal emails, things around the apartment than I am with actual worklife. It doesn't help when I crawl into bed at 6 p.m. I think my presentation was well received.
I had an interesting experience on my flight from Atlanta to Birmingham. After we boarded the plane, the pilot made an announcement over the p.a. that we were carrying special cargo. A unit from Iraq was bringing one of their fellow soldiers home for a burial. He asked all of us to stay seated when we landed in Birmingham so the soldiers could show their respect. The pilot apologized for sounding so choked up.
When we arrived in Birmingham and taxied to the gate, I could see a hearse and several Alabama state troopers lined up. When the soldiers stood up in first class, I half expected some idiots in coach to get up and prepare to exit. Nope. Everyone stayed seated. The soldiers left the plane along with the pilots. Several airport workers unloaded the casket from its box and the soldiers went through their routine of placing the American flag on the casket. Everyone on the plane was still silent. People were either watching out the window or craning their necks to catch a glimpse of what was happening. As the soldiers carried the casket to the hearse, I saw men on the plane take their hats off. Several of the men near me were crying. As they gave their final salute, the Alabama troopers joined in. The soldiers did a march around the hearse and walked off the airfield. Everyone remained silent as we gathered our luggage and walked off the plane.
Later, I was talking to one of the fellow passengers who was attending the same meeting. We talked about how we take so much for granted and how this was such a reminder of everything at stake in our society and upcoming election. It was the same day as the Pennsylvania election but I'll save you from my rant on that particular issue. As we talked later that night, we mentioned how we felt uncomfortable watching such a personal ceremony take place, yet we felt honored to silently honor this soldier. I dealt with a fair amount of anger at our government for even putting this soldier in harms way. Ironically, one of my favorite bloggers happened to mention this Esquire article on the same day as my flight. I highly recommend reading it.
1 comment:
Wow. We forget the cost of war too easily till it's brought home to us. My visits to the Vietnam Memorial and Arlington National Cemetery did that for me last week. As our Arlington tour guide said, war is sometimes necessary, but it should always be the last resort. Thanks for sharing this story and the Esquire article.
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