National Military Appreciation Month

Since this is the month that we honor the military, I would like to give a salute and tip of the hat to all the men and women who serve our county in the Air Force and are stationed at Barksdale Air Force base.

I have lived in Norfolk/Virginia Beach and have experienced the awesomeness that is our military. There is a reason why people have bumper stickers on their cars that say "I love jet noise" and I have to admit I do. It is the sound of freedom. Plus, watching fighter jets doing maneuvers over the water while driving down the freeway over the water with a destroyer on one side and aircraft carrier on the other is a feeling that I cannot describe.

Which brings me to Barksdale and the men and women who give all for the Freedoms that we take for granted every day. When I am sitting in my house at night and hear and seeing the B-52s landing (we live in the flight path), hearing and seeing them take off (which is rare, except for this morning), it makes me take pause.

My son and I have the same fascination with air craft and every time a jet flies over the house, we both look at each other or run outside to see the plane flying overhead.  He is too young to understand what he is seeing, but one day he will. He respects the planes, as a 4 year old could. He points them out every time he sees them and when they are overhead, he is silent...something that he isn't very often...LOL.

Despite all of the negativity you hear about the price tags that go with having a military and living in a sovereign nation, it all has a purpose and I certainly plan on teaching my son about what those planes mean to each and every one of us; Freedom and all of the benefits of Freedom.

God Bless our military and thank you for giving all.