I think the only thing that might surpass a mother’s joy at the birth of her child, is the return of her son (or daughter, in my case) from active military duty overseas. My daughter flew in yesterday from her year long deployment and I could not be more relieved. While her body remains unscathed, I cannot know what emotional wounds she may bring with her. The military wreaks havoc on souls, that is beyond the scope of ordinary citizens. Even in times of peace, soldiers are permanently imprinted with a kind of hypersensitivity, adrenalin lying in wait, always ready for the unexpected.
When I think of the millions of mothers through the centuries, who have lost sons in the name of patriotism, I cannot help but sense the unendurable anguish they have felt. A young man or woman, dying or permanently disabled in the prime of his or her life, because of war, is beyond my comprehension. I do not believe that in the entirety of human history, there has ever been a time where war was not going on somewhere in the world. Surely this is not our human means of “survival of the fittest”, for it has barely impacted our ever burgeoning population.
I see only the absurdity of war – the senseless, pointless, wasteful, bloody ugliness of it. War is entered into based on the decisions of only one or a handful of men. It is the blind leading the blind – into death. There is a minority, a group of retaliatory people here in our own country, who are trying to create chaos and confusion. They are wedging a blade of hatred into the midst of our neighbors, driving us further apart. They are sitting bombs ready to be detonated.
At this time in history, it is crucial that rivalries and bigotry and intolerance be put down. It is vital that we come together and establish lasting peace among ourselves. We must do this not only for the sake of human life, and not only for our own country. We must do this for all of life. We must do this for our planet. We must become the peacemakers. Blessed are the peacemakers.
