The price

sometimes what is paid is not generally what we expected.......

In 1975 i was eight years old riding in the cavernous belly of a KC-135 with a platoon of marines and assorted equipment out of Torrejon' Spain to the wondrous mythical "states' .

a stop for fuel and to jam more equpment in at ramstein (still do not know how to spell it) brought a new and odd passenger that was treated with the greatest amount of respect by the young marines and my father.

I found a way to get a sharp glare from dad by asking if he was a pirate because of his hook for a hand and artificial leg.

a friendly man, he ambled over said he had a boy my age and asked if i understood how every soldier had to be willing to pay the price of his life for his country.

Shyly Trying to burrow into the safety of my dads arms and yet stay seated on the uncomfortable bench that was our seats due to his somewhat fearsome appearance; I nodded yes.

allowing but a single tear to trickle, he explained that no one warns you surviving ,years of painful therapy, remembering those lost, losing your wife and kids because they can not deal with your depression is another price a soldier can be asked to pay.

Author's Note

my stuff is merely short vignettes but usually tells a tale.