What it means to be a Veteran
A person who has served or is serving in the armed forces.
That’s the dictionary definition, but every year at this time I think about the deeper meaning. What it means to those I’ve served with, my family, friends and, well, me.
At it’s most basic level, as someone once summarized for me, it means USMC: U Signed [the] Motherf***ing Contract
I jest but it’s the core tenant that ties all of us together— regardless of branch or specialty. We all signed on the dotted line and gave the government a blank check saying in effect:
if necessary, you can have my life in defense of the country
Don’t get me wrong, a legal clerk in the Chair Force has a significantly lower probability of dying in battle than a recon Marine in Al Anbar, Iraq, but in principle, they both signed on the line and in my mind both get to call themselves veterans.
With that out of the way, I want to walk through a couple perspectives of “what it means” to be a veteran. My hope is that it resonates with those that have been there and also shines a light into this part of the world for those that haven’t served. The military experience is something that so few today experience, and fewer still understand and so remains largely misunderstand.
