As a teacher, one of the most rewarding moments is when former students return and you can see how they're turning out. A few days ago, a student who had graduated two years ago came back to visit. He'd gone immediately into the army. In the past two years he's served in Iraq, Afghanistan, Korea, and in Iraq again. He just reenlisted despite his fiance's objections because he said there was a job to do and it wasn't finished. He'd been injured in the leg, but said that all it meant was that he couldn't run very fast.

I asked him what message he wished that civilians could receive. He said that he wished that people would realize that they didn't have to support the war or the president, but that they should support the troops. I said that I had had the impression that there was a lot of support for the troops from everyone. And he said that he'd had two very unpleasant experiences each time he'd come home on leave. On two separate occasions, people had come up to him in the airport while he was wearing his uniform and just chewed him out about the war. He said that they wouldn't get out of his face and were calling him all sorts of ugly names. I'm just appalled. It's hard to believe that there are such rude lifeforms out there that would treat a soldier that way. I'd heard of that back in the days of Vietnam, but thought that we were beyond that today. I guess not. So, when you see someone in the armed forces, be especially nice to them. Make up for the creeps that are out there.

On another note, I was talking to my dad who won the Distinguished Flying Cross in World War II and proudly has a DFC bumper sticker on his car. He said that a stranger came up to him in the parking lot a few weeks ago and thanked him for his service. He was so touched and he said that no one had ever said anything like that to him before.

Everyone needs to hear it.