I am about as against war as you can be. I just wanted to say that from the outset. I realize that can be a somewhat unreasonable position, but there it is.
Several years ago now a friend of my friend Christine was killed by a roadside bomb while on a mission in Iraq. From the things Christine has told me, he was an amazing young man. He wasn't even supposed to be included in the mission - he went in place of a friend who had essentially become immobilized and ineffective from fear. This alone speaks volumes about him.
The day after his death, Christine was trying to come to terms with it by saying perhaps he had saved someone who will be an important figure in the future. Before he left for Iraq he posted an essay on his MySpace page explaining why he enlisted. Because, you see, he was a peace loving soul. If you spend the time to read the complete essay, it is amazing to realize how much of what he wanted to do in life he accomplished in death. An article in the LA Times detailed a little bit of the stir his life and death created. His essay has been read on the floor of the Senate and, for a time at least, popped up all over the net.
On the one hand, I hope that there are more young men like him in the services who have joined up with the intent of doing some good. And perhaps actually succeeding at it, as it appears from the Times article Mark was able to do. On the other hand, I hope that there aren't too many like him. To lose too many such young men would be a tragedy indeed. To lose any is something that tears apart my peace-loving, liberal-democrat sensibilities. Obviously, Mark’s death in and of itself is a tragedy I only wish could have been avoided. As his father says at the end of the Times article, he would give all the attention and outpourings of grief and support back a thousand fold for the chance to hug his son one more time.
I didn't know this young man. But I know the affect he had on my friend's life. While his death makes me incredibly sad, his life and his words give me a bit of hope about the desperation of war and the young men in our military. I just wanted to share a bit of that on Memorial Day….
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