“Every face seemed older than it should have been, more hard-bitten.”
~ George Hunt, Marines

“Going, they are young and in the best of health. Returning, they are old and beaten shells that once were men.”
~ Sailor describing those who debarked for & later re-embarked from, Pacific island battles WWII

The replacements gingerly surveyed old-timers and wondered, “Are we going to look like that?” Veterans saw that question in the glances of new men; with certain knowledge – And yes, the new soldiers then and now return not only looking different in appearance but changes on the inside as well…

“Their youth will decay; they’ll become tired and aged”-but with a certain pity for innocence they knew would be lost, they seldom tendered the answer: “Yes, very soon.”
~ Gerald F. Linderman, The World within War

Pictured to the left is a changed Screaming Eagle from the battles in Holland in September 1944. David Clinton Tharp, my 101st Airborne father pictured to the right returned changed after battle. He writes about those changes but emphasizes the greater change within…

And so it remains the same with all soldiers of all wars, past and present. They return different, changed inside and out. May we embrace them upon their return with compassion and gentle understanding of those changes and give them time to transition back to us.

My father would be proud that we are paying it forward as a contributor to Operation First Response and the sponsorship of fundraisers assisting our veterans today.

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Photo Source: Orange is the Color of the Day