“The Blast Injury of My soldier, My husband” Submitted by Colleen Saffron
I am right now dealing with my husband’s medical issues. Emotionally my husband is dealing with things my mind can not wrap around. I realize how incredibly lucky we are with today’s medical advances & opportunities here in America. My soldier, my husband is alive, he’s going to one day be finished with all the surgeries. My heart breaks for the wounds I cannot see. The dreams that have him crying out in the night & the lives of the men who died beside him is no different from what any veteran goes through who has seen battle.
My soldier, my husband was in a seat of a vehicle when a phone triggered a buried bomb. Soldiers in front & on either side immediately perished that day. An ambush of bullets sounded everywhere as my soldier, my husband suffered physical, but not spiritual wounds that day. Without his training, desire to live & his faith my husband would have wounds untreatable that day.
When you hear a story on the news, when you see a person in military uniform, when you think about Iraq please pray for these men & women. I do believe our soldiers are heroes, because they do extraordinary things, & for them this is ordinary. Imagine willfully going somewhere to risk limb & life to bring freedom for the children of today & tomorrow. The hope of a life is an amazing thing, as we understand & are fortunate enough to have in the free world.
The very idea of freedom is frightening to those who have always lived in a prison, people who never breathed a breath without a dictator over them. A life were terrorism is as common as the ground under your feet. A life were you must receive permission to hold onto life--yours, a family member, a friend, a job, a walk in the sun.
Irregardless of your stand on the war, the fact is that soldiers are there and soldiers do not leave till told the job is finished. Our soldiers are strong, compassionate & hardworking, despite the handful of stories told on TV or through rumors. Our soldiers understand taking orders but they do not & will not except tyranny.
I ask you to continue, praying without ceasing for all our soldiers as they assist the Iraqi people in the fight for freedom against insurgents & corruption. As we learned from the past, protests in Washington may achieve things, but protesting a soldier’s home only makes deep wounds deeper. This brings attention to you, the protester but not the issue. Protesting the family home only makes recovering hearts impaired.
My soldier, my husband developed many relationships with men & women in Iraq, Kuwait, & Germany, as many soldiers do.
My soldier, my husband had an Iraqi national who helped save his life the night the insurgents attacked my husband’s vehicle. I believe the Iraqi children deserve to live, play, learn, pray & have hope for today & tomorrow just like my children & the children in America. I ask you to pray for my soldier, my husband as he undergoes ongoing surgeries to his face, teeth, & jaw. The doctors were able to save his arm due to modern medicine, but this could never have happened during the Vietnam years.
Medicine has come a long way & continues to change constantly. It is vital for wounded & those with medical needs to go to yearly medical exams & all follow-up appointments for the latest in medicine. A Yearly exam of all medications taken is vital. Financing is available through Medicare, Medicaid, & misc. insurance programs.
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