Veteran’s day gone, yet hopefully not forgotten

Tuesday, the 10th of November, was last week. It was the day before Veterans Day and MHCC was filled with an adolescent fervor you can only find at a school the day before a holiday. It’s not the holiday that had us so inspired; it was the simple prospect of spending a weekday doing anything but schoolwork. While that’s not really in the true spirit of Veterans Day, I’m a veteran and I felt the same way.

As the campus emptied that day I found myself walking past the bookstore. There was a sign offering free coffee to veterans the day after Veterans Day. My avidity for the free iced mocha that would carry me through my math class was quickly dashed by the four flags adorning the windows of the bookstore. The flags of the Marines, Navy, Army, and Air Force were all proudly displayed in acknowledgment of those veterans’ service. My dismay comes from the feeling that my 12 years of service did not warrant a flag in our bookstore. By the time I was forced to retire from the U.S. Coast Guard, I felt I had done my fair share for our country. Injuries I incurred during my service have left me walking with a slight limp when it’s cold out, but that’s not enough to earn a place for my flag in that window?

That being said, its not the bookstore’s fault there was no Coast Guard flag; it’s not as though the staff purposefully left us out. Most Americans don’t even know there are five military branches. In all honesty, I spent enough time in the Coast Guard to know that we are the country’s forgotten service, and that’s fine. None of us joined for the accolades of strangers. At least, that’s what I tell myself every time this comes up.

Soon, the day after Veterans Day had come, so I headed to the bookstore for my free cup of coffee. Classes kept me busy all day but in the back of my head, I knew I had an iced mocha waiting for me. I barged through the door of the store and made a beeline for the coffee shop.

“You still open?” I asked.

“Nope.”

The sign on the register said the shop closes at 3:30. I pulled out my phone in time to watch the clock slip from 3:29 to 3:30. Once again, I had this sinking feeling my service wasn’t quite enough. That’s not on the coffee shop, though. I did not make it on time, and just like the rest of the country, it was celebrating veterans during normal business hours only. That is not the coffee shop’s fault; it’s the American way.

And with that, another Veterans Day had come and gone. Our annual day of mendacious thanks from apathetic citizens was over.

I know it’s supposed to be the thought that counts, but, to be honest, some of us veterans can’t help but get a little agitated on Veterans Day. It’s not as though we don’t appreciate the sentiment; it is the inconsistency at which this sentiment is expressed.

Advocate Staff