FRED Friday on Memorial Day…a Thank You
If you’ve read Mark Sanborn’s book, The Fred Factor, you know what it means to be a Fred. If you haven’t read it, perhaps you’ve read some of the Fred Friday posts on this blog, in the past 14
months…
What makes a Fred a
FRED? At the core, it’s the
passion, creativity, and commitment with which they approach their everyday
routines that literally transform the ordinary
into the extraordinary…
This weekend you and I are able to celebrate Memorial
Day. We enjoy times like these with
our family, our friends, and our loved ones. We’re afforded the right
to wake up each morning with the opportunity to capitalize on whatever
opportunities the day presents…we get to work, play, rest, shop, dine, and
experience anything and everything we desire.
The opportunities are more like privileges, when we really
stop and think about it. You and I
are free. We live in a free country. Relative to the rest of the world, we
truly are the LUCKY ONES…
We are free…but
the blessings and the privileges you and I realize are not free…
Our service men and women, overseas and on American soil, in
every branch of the United States armed forces…past, present, &
future…sacrifice their own lives, time, energy, and livelihood…for you, me, and
the United States of America.
Their commitment
makes this the home of the brave, and
it’s that same commitment that makes this the land of the free.
Thank you, from the
bottom of my heart, to the service men and women – past, present, and future –
as well as their families, whose passion, commitment, and sacrifice to this
country allow all of us to reap the benefits of living in this great country…
One for the road…
This morning in church they asked all current members or
veterans of the United States armed forces to stand and be recognized. As we all gave them a heartfelt round
of applause, the gentleman seated next to me stood up to be recognized. He stood up…tall, proud, and he gave a
fistpump to the air above his right shoulder as the entire congregation
applauded.
I watched as the men and women standing throughout the
auditorium looked around at one another.
They gave each other quick, yet meaningful looks…I watched several make eye contact, and I wondered what must
have been going through their minds.
As my new friend next to me sat back down, I couldn’t help but extend my
arm out to him for a handshake. We
made eye contact, he smiled, I smiled, and all I could muster was, “…thank you…”.
He immediately shook my hand firmly, and replied, “my pleasure, sir…”
For the rest of the service and every minute since, I
haven’t been able to stop thinking about that moment. Our service men and women sacrifice so much, yet all I could
say was a mere, ‘thank you’. Was that
enough? I want to tell him
again…and again…
Please forward this post on to the service men and women you
know in your lives. Spread
it. Share it. Email it. Tweet it.
Facebook it. I hope this
makes its way all around the world and back…so that our soldiers and veterans
hear a Thank You loud and clear, from
the OneMoreStepRevolution Team & Community.
They are the ultimate Freds…ordinary men and women, just like you
and I…yet they lay it all on the line, and devote their time, energy, passion,
and commitment for people they don’t even know…so that the United States of
America can remain the extraordinary land
of the free…
That, my friends, is service…an
ultimate OneMoreStep.
“What makes any act
extraordinary is doing it with heart.
What makes any life extraordinary is living it with love.” – Mark Sanborn, The Fred Factor, page 108
Thank you, soldiers
& veterans, on this Memorial Day Weekend…
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