Honoring the alive

Thought I would share this email:

One of my patients this week was a tall, blonde-haired, young (early twenties) man who is getting a medical discharge from the US Army. We are required to review each patient's medical history, and I like to get to know something about my patients. This is what I learned:

I noticed that his chest was bandaged, heavily on the left side, and he was in some pain. He had very recently undergone surgery for a gunshot wound sustained while in Iraq. He also could not straighten the fingers on his right hand, and was to undergo another surgery to correct that condition. That happened in Afghanistan in hand-to-hand combat when he had to grab the blade of a knife that his opponent was trying to stab him with; his tendons had been cut. But, as he said, "The Afghani insurgents don't eat too good, so they tend to crumple pretty easy once you get a hold of them." He said he had lost some weight since the injuries; he used to weigh 240 lbs. He was also suffering from degenerated discs in his back; not uncommon in soldiers who hump a heavy pack for long periods in rough terrain. He was also taking multiple psychiatric drugs and getting counseling; not uncommon in those who have experienced intense combat violence.

He is originally from Colorado Springs. His father was an Air Force Academy graduate. He plans to go back to school.

This is the face of the soldiers that are defending our country. Just one example.

Yesterday I said good-bye and good luck to a really nice young man, who I had trained here at the clinic for a couple months. He is originally from Belize. He had been learning dental procedures to help prepare him as a US Army combat medic. Now he is leaving for Iraq.

I feel honored to be able to work with such people. These are the people who are committed without hesitation to do the necessary dirty work for America.

Yes.