Today, we remember those who have died for freedom.

Thinking about what that concept entails seems daunting to me. I have just begun to comprehend the meaning of my own life, and still struggle daily to find my own place in this world. How can one who knows so little of life contemplate death? In the past, I have called myself wise. However, due to certain events in the past months, I have come to realize I am nothing more than a child. This world holds much, and in it is wisdom which I have never seen and possibly will never see. And yet, today they ask us to remember, honor, and contemplate those who have died so that we may live.

As I said, such a thing is strange. We humans are fleeting, whispers on the wind, taking up only a brief existence before it is snuffed out. Death is what defines usbest, I think, though many others have made that sentiment before. But we know so little of death itself. Humans have lived for centuries, and yet we can still be taken by the common flu and disease. Our light can be blown away like a candle in the moonlight, leaving those around us to grieve and lament at who we were when we walked on the unforgiving ground. It strikes me how amusing it is that we see death in a multitude of ways as well. Sometimes it is cold, cruel, and horrifying, that Grim Reaper which takes the spring and joy of youth. Other times, it is kind and thoughtful, removing the burdens of those who are weary and worn. And again, it is neither cruel nor kind, but just is. Think of the millions, the billions, the uncounted number of people who have died. The sheer numbers are staggering. Go back 100 years, and count the deaths. From 1910 onward, just in our country. Think about the number of lives which have been cut away from the warm blanket of life and taken to a place which we have yet to truly define or understand. I am not talking of deaths of soldiers, I will get to that in a moment. No, think right now of every person who has died. Consider the number. And that is nothing, nothing but a speck on the world. We now live for a long time by previous standards. We have lives which stretch out for numerous years, and in them many of us may never even see another death, save our own. But, inevitably, it waits for us.

Most, I think, go their lives without contemplating it. It surprises them, a wolf waiting for its prey in the forest, patient and strong and unchanging. If every living soul considered every second of their lives that the next they may be taken from what they know and sent on their way, how would everyone live? Would they be so careless, so naive, so whimsical? Many look at it through the lens of faith, but even then that is only a feeling based on no evidence to comfort them in the night. I am not saying to have faith is foolish (far from it, as I have much faith myself), but I am looking at it objectively. We do not know, therefore we cannot prove, the existence of anything beyond what we have here. And so many, including myself, have squandered it. We take so much of our lives for granted, wasting it and doing nothing. We wallow in misery, depression, grief, anguish, and a host of other harmful emotions. We stagnate ourselves with the petty entertainments of shallow and fleeting amusements. I am not stating that to have fun is a sin, but we rarely stop to consider the true nature of our amusements. The vices of homo sapien are many, and they are foolish to the last. Many are concerned solely with themselves and their moments of happiness, and think of little else. Is it a bad way to live? Or is that just the way it is?

However, I stray from the true point of my essay. While there are many philosophical questions which one should ponder, today we are asked to remember those who died fighting. And this I think is something which should not be taken lightly. There are men and women from around the world, in every army, who have stood up for what they believed in and put one price on the line for it: their lives. Yes, we are asked to remember our American military. But, for a moment, consider any person, in any country, who has fought for others to be free, and paid for it with the breath in their body. Now, put yourself in their place. As a solider, I can say that I know how they feel. I leave very soon for the place where the Persian Empire once ruled. I go there to stand and speak for the American people, for each one of you reading this essay and countless more. I willingly volunteered to put my life on the line (and even helped to speed up the process in certain circumstances) to go defend your right to call me a foolish, money-seeking torturer. Haha, of course some of you are more sympathetic, but you grasp my point. I go there with full knowledge that I may be obliterated in a blast of heat and iron, or taken by a sniper's bullet. However, I still go. I willingly bring that upon myself. Many, many more have done the same, and I honor each one of them.

Being a soldier, being one who fights for others... it is a strange life. And today we remind ourselves of it. We are the ones who put the thoughts and feelings of ourselves on hold. Yes, many soldiers think of themselves often. But when it comes down to it, when we are faced with the cold, hard reality... We do not fight for ourselves. We seek to survive, yes. But more importantly, we stand on that line so others will not have to stand with us. We pick up our weapons and defend the American politicians, workers, businesses, and way of life not because of personal gain. We may dislike many in the United States, and disagree with much that has been done in our country. We may say, and truly believe, that we are in this lifestyle for ourselves. But I can testify that very few do not take in the scope of what it is we do. We put our bodies in the crossfire so freedom may endure. I say freedom, and not democracy or some other such political ideology. Politics on the whole is a fool's game, one better suited for those who would rather spend their days arguing than laughing. No, I say for freedom. Because it is freedom which allowed me to willingly sign my name on that contract to fulfill my service to what I hold dear. I was not forced to do that, but did so of my own volition. And that is what I fight for. I fight for our ability to make the choice, and never have to be forced into a life which we do not choose. And it is today that we remember the many more who gave the ultimate sacrifice defending that ability. They should be praised higher than any other who has come before, because they gave up what is sweet and precious to face the unknown. They defended that which they loved to the last breath.

Today, we remember those who died. Remember them well. Think, if you will, on life itself. Consider what we all give up at the end. But, please, take into deeper consideration those who gave it up willingly. Remember the soldiers. Remember all those in the past who have stood against an oppressor and said that they would not let freedom be taken. And never forget who they were: common men and women, choosing to do uncommon things in a tumultuous time.