By Tommy Acosta
Sedona, AZ — Could you imagine standing in front of a bullet? Not metaphorically—but literally. Could you imagine charging into live fire, heart pounding, legs trembling, not knowing if your next breath will be your last? Could you imagine throwing yourself on a grenade, or walking into a minefield, or storming a machine gun nest just to give the guy behind you a better shot at staying alive?
Most of us can’t.
That’s why we pause on Memorial Day.
We pause to remember those who could imagine it—and who did it anyway. Who walked into chaos so that we wouldn’t have to. Who died in trenches, deserts, jungles, cities. Who burned, bled, broke, and were buried so that we could sleep safely in our beds at night. So that we could raise families, speak freely, vote, dream.
Behind every American flag waving in the sun is a shadow—of a soldier who never came home.
It takes more than patriotism to face the fire. It takes more than training, more than toughness. It takes an unflinching devotion to something greater than yourself: your brothers and sisters in arms, your home, your ideals. It takes a heart that can kill when it has to—and grieve afterward. A soul strong enough to see death up close and carry that weight for the rest of its life.
And it makes no difference why you are there, whether you enlisted or were drafted. You are there and there are no arguments whether you should be or not. Whether it’s a just war or not.
Can you imagine holding your best friend’s hand as he dies beside you? Can you imagine returning home and having to explain to his mother why he never made it back?
Some of us don’t have to imagine. Some of us lost fathers, brothers, sisters, mothers—friends who went off to war and never returned. For those families, every day is Memorial Day. They carry folded flags in glass cases, etched names on granite walls, and memories that never quite fade.
And yet, the soldier never really dies alone. He dies for something. She dies for something. For you. For me. For the idea that liberty is worth defending—even at the cost of one’s own life.
That is the measure of courage. That is the cost of freedom.
This Memorial Day, as we light our barbecues, as we gather with friends, let us not forget why we have the right to do so. Let us not forget those still in uniform—men and women standing watch in distant places, ready at a moment’s notice to do what must be done. Ready to become names on another wall if that is what duty demands.
In a world of growing uncertainty, with weapons of annihilation and conflicts rising in every direction, it’s easy to feel afraid. But in the end, it always comes down to the same truth: the ground war, the foot soldier, the human being with boots in the mud and sweat on the brow, staring down a threat and refusing to back down. Technology may evolve, but courage remains human.
So today, let us honor not just the fallen—but the living who still carry the scars. Let us honor the ones who took their own lives after the battles ended, who lost the war at home. Let us honor their memory with gratitude, with reverence, and with action.
If you see a veteran today, thank them. Mean it. If you lost someone, speak their name aloud. Light a candle. Say a prayer. Hold your children tight and tell them about sacrifice, about valor, about what it means to be truly brave.
Memorial Day is not just about mourning. It is about memory—and the solemn promise to never forget.
We owe them that much.
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5 Comments
Your powerful, respectful, emotional, thoughtful writing caused me to think more deeply about the sacrifices our women and men gave… whether drafted or volunteers. And the loss their families and close friends feel every day. Thank you Tommy. Well done!
Skip Daum
USAF
Growing up, I was raised to respect veterans, their families and their sacrifices. My Great Uncle was a Ball Turret Gunner During WWII, had another Uncle who lost half of his left arm and all but 2 fingers on his right hand (he used to jokingly tell us he lost them getting caught in the automatic doors at the grocery store) he lost jumping on a Nazi “Potato Masher” or Stielhandgranate during the Battle of the Buldge. My stepfather was a Combat Engineer and my mother’s brother was a RECON Marine during the American War on Vietnam (he suffers from severe PTSD to this day). My Great Aunt and Uncle (the ball turret gunner) made it a point to include the youth of our family in VFW Memorial and Veterans Day Ceremonies at various burials for our recently deceased veterans. It was always a solemn experience. All very much reasons why I joined the military at the age of 18.
The lesson was always that service and sacrifice are necessary noble ideologies required of our nation’s service members in order to protect and preserve Democracy and Freedoms. While in service I learned that our Democracy and Freedoms were being fought for and protected by people of all colors, races, religions and ideologies. And that we’re all responsible for one another’s returning home after each deployment.
Sadly these lessons were not learned by those destroying it all for $ and exclusion of “others”.
Thank you for your service, JB, and to all your relations before you. I do believe you served well … and now… I would love to see you rid of the demons that bring forth such chaos and rage within you. You deserve to be healed and close the doors to such evil energy. It is my true prayer that help will be come your way and that you will say yes and thank you. You deserve peace after all your service.
I’ve written several responses to your post and none have been posted because they address your hate of me for not supporting a hate filled criminal insurrectionist. Guess it’s ok to hate the messenger of truth by slandering their honesty with biased attacks upon their character on Memorial Day of all days? Does your Bible say to lie about and ignore what Satan is or represents? Or does it say bad people are bad people who are ultimately held accountable for their crimes and actions no matter how many confessionals they attend to absolve themselves of their crimes and sins? You say I’m full of Rage and Hateful because I won’t lie or pretend that our government is being torn asunder by a ship of Billionaire Elitist Criminal Fools? Makes about as much sense as claiming that CA has the highest unemployment and poverty rates in the country when it absolutely does not. But that’s “Alternative Facts” for you in an Alt Right White Nationalist run Government of a country that once upon a time was “the Beacon of Democracy and Freedom to the world “ but is now a Tyrannical Authoritarian Autocracy (the very same kind of Tyrannical Authoritarian Autocracy the US Government and Military has lost 1.19 million lives fighting against).
So don’t waste your words of “faith” upon me when you very clearly think truth is a form of hate. Instead you should spend your every waking minute praying we don’t have a Civil War and World War III all at once and all because we just had to have a convicted felon insurrectionist dismantling our government and Democracy while personally, illegally making billions off of it every single day!
I’m still waiting on my “Forever Tax Breaks”, my portion of the 2 billion dollars of the 2 trillion dollars DOGE falsely claimed it would save taxpayers, a ride in the country’s taxpayer funded multi billion dollar Jumbo Jet gifted to “US” by Qatar and my lifetime membership to visit the taxpayer funded multi billion dollar Trump Resorts established by President Trump and Trump Inc. while acting in his official capacity as President during his visits to Dubai, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and his new found bromance with the current president of Syria who also negotiated Trump Resorts being built in Syria while President Trump established a new sanction less relationship with a member of the Caliphate directly responsible for US Military casualties.
Wondering why someone like me might be so angry to see our country become the exact same thing as I am my comrades were sent to eliminate time and time again? Hmmmm why would I possibly be upset by that? And why would I dislike people who slander our troops and veterans? Can’t imagine? Perhaps you in all your wisdom can explain why?
My final attempt to reply to S Suzanne’s very confused post from Memorial Day.
“I would love to see you rid of the demons that bring forth such chaos and rage within you. You deserve to be healed and close the doors to such evil energy. It is my true prayer that help will be come your way and that you will say yes and thank you“
Exactly what Demons are bringing what Chaos and Rage within me?
Since when is telling the truth, especially about a Convicted Felon Insurrectionist President being a Convicted Felon Insurrectionist hate?
I took a solemn oath to protect and defend these United States against ALL ENEMIES both Foreign and DOMESTIC. I have never been relieved of those duties.
Telling people of the things the current President has been indicted on and or convicted of is also NOT HATE.
If telling the truth is HATE then your Bible and 10 Commandments encourage it. Therefore there is definitely something flawed in your assumptions that I am full of Demons, Chao and Rage. Although I will admit that my life has been Chaos ever since I left the service and I saw firsthand the Hatred and Lies being pumped into the feeble minds of Tea Party cultist and the lies and hatred that pumped out of them. Then came MAGA and a POTUS who are even more full of lies hate and rage in the form of the Charlottesville HATE March, the Jan 6th violent Insurrectionist Attack on the Nation’s Capitol, multiple insurrectionist attacks on States Capitols, an attempt to kidnap and kill the Gov of MI, the SCOTUS overturning precedent despite swearing under oath they would never do so, the DOGE Chainsaw putting thousands of middle and lower income Federal workers out of jobs, the Pentagon being run by a mascara wearing homophobe incompetent nincompoop who somehow doesn’t know what “classified” or “secure” means.
If saying these truths is hate then explain to me how those things the courts keep rejecting daily like wrongful unconstitutional illegal deportations, Emoluments Act Violations and illegal tariffs are not ?
So keep your prayers for someone who may need or want them, I certainly do not. I sleep perfectly well at night knowing I do not and will not contribute to nor support the illegal actions of Billionaires Elitist Convicted Felons destroying our DEMOCRACY no matter how much or many people pretend they are not.