I have never been a fan of those pundits, commentators
and journalist who use the phrase “ultimate sacrifice” to describe those
warriors who lost their lives in battle or on behalf of our country. The folks
at Merriam Webster define the word
Sacrifice as- “the act of giving up
something that you want to keep especially in order to get or do something else
or to help someone.” Most if not all of the members of the military that I
have had the pleasure to have met, know or call friend would never willingly “give
up” their lives; they would fight tooth and nail to return home to their family
and if they died in battle they would do it with honor.
With her book American Wife: A Memoir of Love, War, Faith
and Sacrifice, Taya Kyle, the wife of Chris Kyle, the
man dubbed the American Sniper has released a story that is part loving tribute
to the legendary warrior and a poignant reminder of the difficult sacrifice
that the families of our all-volunteer fighting force make when they allow
those men and women to go off to far flung places to fight for the freedoms we
all in enjoy. It is a story that has never been given enough play and one that
we all need to be reminded up more often.
While those family members are not subject to the level
of danger that the warriors face a solid case could be made that many of those
family members and survivors need to be given the support to deal with the
stresses and strains involved with loved ones subjected to battle in far flung
places for extended periods. Mrs. Kyle details the efforts to impact the lives
of not only warriors, but also their families through work started by Chris
before his devastating murder and continued by her with untold strength and
grace.
She provides insight into not only the difficulties of
separation, the uncertainty spawned by the dangerous career choice of sniper,
but also the rollercoaster ride that she and her children have been on since
her husband’s murder. Throughout she maintains a level of, at least by outward
appearances, even tempered candidness, that I personally can’t muster when it
comes to things like the legal case brought by the dirt bag former Governor of
Minnesota, turned conspiracy theorist whack-a-mole, Jesse Ventura.
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