COMMENTARY: Honor your past, live for right now, look to your future

  • Published
  • By Master Sgt. Adam Wright
  • 100th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron first sergeant
RAF MILDENHALL, England --  As we enter the familiar warmth of the impending summer, another spring is behind us. We look forward to planning family trips and warming the barbecue coals with a cold refreshment and good company.

Memorial Day weekend doesn't just mark the beginning of the 101 Critical Days of Summer, it's also a time to reflect on the many men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice so we may enjoy our freedom.

Memorial Day is an opportunity for us to honor the memory of fallen heroes of all American conflicts and wars. This has a personal meaning to my family and me. My grandfather, Edwin Ray Conner, was a senior chief aviation machinist in the U.S. Navy. He proudly served in the Korean Conflict and in May 1970 he was killed while serving in Vietnam.

He was 35 years old and left behind a wife and two children. I'm now the age he was when he died and have a wife and three children of my own. I often think about his sacrifice and wonder what he might have done differently in his life if given the opportunity.

Would he have taken extra time to thank those who made contributions to his development as a person, a man and a father? Would he have squeezed his children a little tighter at night before bed and made more time to hold their hands and tell them how amazing they are? Am I really focused on what's important to me?

We are afforded the opportunity to honor the many people who have worn the uniform before us and show true gratitude for their sacrifice by counting the many blessings in our daily lives, embracing good things and not taking today for granted.

I encourage you to live in the moment and take time to:

· Enjoy your favorite sounds of life.
· Savor your favorite meal.
· Appreciate something beautiful.
· Thank someone.
· Tell someone you care about how you feel.
· Look to the future.

We carry the torch of freedom across the globe to bring hope and inspiration for all to see. We, like those before us, have an opportunity to safeguard the freedoms of future generations.

Honor the past by truly living in the moment and embracing today. Show gratitude for the gifts we have been blessed with and work hard every day to ensure a secure future for generations to come.