Phantom Blooper
10-22-03, 06:16 AM
Facts and figures never tell the whole story of human suffering. Two hundred forty-one is only a number, but to me it represents the lives lost of so many more. The 132,000 pounds of medical supplies, emergency equipment and body bags flown from the ships offshore was astronomical; but that single shot of morphine needed to ease the pain and suffering of one Marine, sailor or soldier has more impact. The rumble from the BLT HQ’s stretching for hundreds of meters along the runway was very impressive; but a friend dying while trying to help is unforgettable. A crater forty feet across and ten feet deep created by 12,000 pounds of explosives is grotesquely shocking; but a vacant hole left by a husband, son, father, brother or comrade who isn’t coming home can never be filled.
Suffering and death in monumental proportions, unless you are there strike no nerve. A fleeting wave of sympathy may come to pass, but then a new thought and a new day dawns.
That unforgettable day in October 1983 gave the definition of devastation and despair a meaning that I never experienced before. The mission was one of peacekeeping. “They Came In Peace” Rest my brothers for we will remember and never let your memory die. Semper-Fi! “Never Forget”
Suffering and death in monumental proportions, unless you are there strike no nerve. A fleeting wave of sympathy may come to pass, but then a new thought and a new day dawns.
That unforgettable day in October 1983 gave the definition of devastation and despair a meaning that I never experienced before. The mission was one of peacekeeping. “They Came In Peace” Rest my brothers for we will remember and never let your memory die. Semper-Fi! “Never Forget”