Memorial Day 2015

Me with the honor guard from New Directions at the VA Center in Santa Monica, CA

Recently I stopped by a bar to see an old friend from high school. We sat at the bar to catch up and reminisce about the old days. He had stayed in the town I had grown up in, Lake Tahoe, and I had left to join the Navy.

We got into a conversation about vets and he made the remark that he didn’t get why everyone made such a big deal about vets or soldiers as they had signed up for a job and were doing it. Why did they need extra stuff or why did we see them as heroes for doing their job? Arrrrghh!

My grandmother used to say “Convince a fool against their will, their of the same opinion still.” So I started talking about, vets not wanting more stuff because they were heroes, but they just wanted what they were promised when they signed up.

The hero part just pissed me off. Many joined for benefits, yes, but many of us joined to fight for our country, our families and the freedom of others around the world. I salute anyone who chooses to put their lives on the line for others, no matter what the job is called.

I just gave up trying to explain. It is sad that many might think this way. I am glad for days like today where we honor our armed forces and everyone that has ever helped keep this country and others free.

So all you armed forces, veterans and any others that contributed. Have a great Memorial Day and thanks so much for your service!

Something else I wanted to share with my fellow vets:

Click Here to Find Book on Amazon

RESILIENCE

There is this great book out right now… It was written by Eric Greitens an ex Navy Seal. Here is the story.

He had another Navy Seal buddy of his start writing him letters about his depression and PTSD issues.

Eric wrote his friend back on various subjects to try and help his friend and fellow Navy Seal.
The letters are incredible and will actually help anyone in life. I have been devouring this book which is packed full of great wisdom that helps me deal with my own stress and other issues I have since I was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer.

From Amazon

Best-selling author, Navy SEAL, and humanitarian Eric Greitens offer a masterpiece of warrior wisdom that will change your life.

You cannot bounce back from hardship. You can only move through it. There is a path through pain to wisdom, through suffering to strength, and through fear to courage if we have the virtue of resilience.In 2012, Eric Greitens unexpectedly heard from a former SEAL comrade, a brother-in-arms he hadn’t seen in a decade. Zach Walker had been one of the toughest of the tough. But ever since he returned home from war to his young family in a small logging town, he d been struggling. Without a sense of purpose, plagued by PTSD, and masking his pain with heavy drinking, he needed help. Zach and Eric started writing and talking nearly every day, as Eric set down his thoughts on what it takes to build resilience in our lives.

Eric s letters drawing on both his own experience and wisdom from ancient and modern thinkers are now gathered and edited into this timeless guidebook. Resilience explains how we can build purpose, confront pain, practice compassion, develop a vocation, find a mentor, create happiness, and much more. Eric s lessons are deep yet practical, and his advice leads to clear solutions.

We all face pain, difficulty, and doubt. But we also have the tools to take control of our lives. Resilience is an inspiring meditation for the warrior in each of us.

If you or a friend (solder or not) is struggling. Get this book, read this book and share this book.

JW Najarian – Founder U.S. Veteran Group on Linkedin [Now over 55,000 Members]

QUOTES

• Ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.  John F. Kennedy
• Patriotism is supporting your country all the time, and your government when it deserves it.  Mark Twain
• I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country.
    Nathan Hale
• There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right with America.  Bill Clinton
• I have long believed that sacrifice is the pinnacle of patriotism.   Bob Riley
• They hover as a cloud of witnesses above this Nation.  Henry Ward Beecher
• Who kept the faith and fought the fight; The glory theirs, the duty ours.  Wallace Bruce
• A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself.  Joseph Campbell
• The patriot’s blood is the seed of Freedom’s tree.  Thomas Campbell
• The legacy of heroes is the memory of a great name and the inheritance of a great example.  Benjamin Disraeli (Earl of Beaconsfield)