Their Ultimate Gift

Mummy, who is that old man that sits over in that chair

He looks like he is elsewhere even though he is just there

It looks like he is missing someone, a mate no longer here

Or remembering times from long ago as he sheds a single tear

Son, that man he is a hero and with many others he answered the call

With courage they went to unknown lands and gave it their very all

Some gave the ultimate gift and sacrificed their own life so dear

And with honour they served their country so we could now be here

I hope you grow to respect the legacy that these fine men have left behind

As they leapt from muddy trenches to storm their enemy’s front line

Fighting for what they believed in and spilling their blood, sweat and tears

Not knowing what each day would bring or if they would face their fears

Your Grandfather fought in Vietnam when your Father was just a boy

Just like the many men before him, when called they would deploy

He died soon after coming home but we were told he was never the same

But my son you should be very proud that you carry on his name

Bec Lawson – Written 25 April 2007

I received the above Poem on Facebook from a now friend who wrote it three years ago on Anzac Day: the occasion which lead her to publish her poem was the death of one of Australia’s own in Afghanistan.

As one who went through the war in Vietnam as a soldier based in Australia I hope that we as a country can get together and support our troops, both as Christians, and at a more basic level, as fellow members of our nation. When one soldier dies it is a loss to us all, it is a tragedy to his family and mates. This multiplies throughout the country for each soldier who dies.

But it becomes an even greater tragedy if, we as a nation, decide that “enough is too much”. I will sadly acknowledge my baggage as one of the survivors of Vietnam who saw too closely the spectacle of good Australians pelting fellow Australians who had just returned from serving their country in a war which just became socially unacceptable, I felt for my fellow servicemen who were reviled by people who very well could have been neighbors.

We who hold to Christ as our standard have been told to love our neighbors and there is no getting around that. We are also told to pray for our enemies, and for those who abuse you. These are major planks to any constitution of the New Testament; the question is how far do we in this 21^ST Century model these planks in our time and culture?

What I would like to suggest is a number of ways that we might do this, not necessarily concurrently:

First we should be praying for the speedy resolution of the war and for the safety of our servicemen,

Second we should be praying for the welfare of the member’s families, and where appropriate creating a loving supportive environment for them.

Third when a young man dies it is a major event in the lives of family and friends. Depending on our situation and relationships, love and support them whilst still permitting them to grieve in a way that is appropriate to them.

Fourth when a serviceman returns from war, we must recognize that he has been doing his job and accept him back into society without any sort of recriminations. Many returning veterans from Vietnam, were so repulsed by the responses they got to news stories that they literally went bush, and stayed there. We did not love them as we should have, and

Fifth There is another thing that we must learn. We must learn to accept our troops when they return from war even if they may not be the same. They have, at least may have, experienced thing that would break our hearts and the will need time to return to “civilization”. We may need to love them through that.

I hope we have learnt our lessons from the past, that we can as Christians respond to the needs of our servicemen in a proper Jesus way. I hope that we as Australians can also not act in the way that we did for the soldiers of Vietnam.

Are there ways that I have left out that should, could, be added to the list?