You Know Why I Joined--That Makes it Easier to Go

Dear Mom & Dad:

I just wanted to write you a little note to help comfort you. I know it must be really hard for you guys. I’m not a parent, so I really don’t have any idea what you’re going through. I mean, on one hand, Aemily (his sister) is getting married, and on the other hand, I’m going off to a possible war. Either way you look at it, it would help me if you concentrated more on the brighter side of it all and I think it will help you as well.

I know it’s easier said than done. But you both are very strong people and I know you will deal with the situation well. Mom, it just hurt to hear you cry for me. I didn’t expect it. I feel good knowing that I have two parents that love me as much as I love them.

You both know and understand why I joined, and that makes it easier for me to go. Just know that I’m also going for the many Americans who have gone before me for 200 years. They paid for my freedom and yours with their blood. Their sacrifice has made it possible for me to choose my own course, and that means more to me than anything else. So, if I should fall in battle in an attempt to preserve those freedoms so the rest of our nation . . . so Aemily’s children . . . don’t have to live and grow in a terrorized America, it will be well worth the sacrifice. Because of you I have lived the best 22 years a man could want, and because of the soldiers before me, I have lived those years freely. I hope I live to see 22 more. But if I don’t, don’t be sad, be proud. Be proud that you had a son who, in a time when most Americans my age continue to take from society, gave.

I love you all very much. I will be OK no matter what. Tie a yellow ribbon for me and when I return we’ll take it down together. Be strong for all the parents who can’t.

Your son, Alex