I just got finished watching the HBO special, "Band Of Brothers." I must say it was very tastefully done and really brought home the pain and suffering that soldiers went through with the whole ordeal of war.
Each episode was directed by a different director, which made each episode take on a little different slant. It was so well done and the collaberation between Tom Hanks and Steven Speilsberg was great. There were many others involved in the whole re-creation of the actual events and story.
It was also very nice before each episode to hear the real soldiers talking about what happened. I started watching the program about 2 weeks ago and I must say that it has brought all kinds of feeling out in me over that short period of time.
I cannot begin to imagine what those men went through and it made me think of both of my grandfathers who were both in the Second World War. They must have gone through the same hell as what every soldier was depicted like in this historically correct program.
I know my grandad McCarthy was a Royal Marine, but don't know too much about where he went or what he did during the war. I just remember my Mum telling me that men never talked about it.
My grandad McCarthy would just leave the room if anyone mentioned anything about the war. I would like to know more of where he went and what part he had in the war, but it is extremely difficult as records were not kept as good as they are today.
My grandad Campbell worked on a Scuttle Ship picking up dead bodies out of the ocean. It must have been horrendous to see and be in the middle of everyday. But the bodies needed to be returned to their rightful homes and given a proper military burial.
Again, empathy is one thing, but to live through that must have been unbelievable. My grandad Campbell was caught by some shrapnel and it blew a small piece of his skull off. He had to learn to walk and talk again and spent some time in convalescence. Again, I don't know a lot about it and the same thing happened as always; men just did not want to talk about it. Too much pain and too many friends lost to be able to handle the stress of it all.
Watching "Band Of Brothers" really made me feel so thankful for all those soldiers that died for all of us. As the soldiers that lived through the war said, "We are not the real heroes. The real heroes are the ones that never made it home and never had a chance to have a family and to create a life!"
Sure brought a lump to my throat watching the program and made me realize that most people, me included, have no idea what soldiers go through during a war. It makes you think the same thing for the soldiers all over the world right now that are going through the same things as the soldiers of the past. War is war and nobody really wins, but a soldier has a job to do and each and every soldier out there, believes that they are doing the right thing for their country and for the world.
Let us not judge any of the soldiers that are involved in any of the conflicts around the world. They are doing what they believe in and most of them have no choice seeing what is around them and going through what they do everyday.
My thoughts and my hope goes out to every soldier involved in any conflict around the world. May he or she live to see a better future and to create a life for themselves. God bless all of you, no matter what god you believe in or even if you don't believe in a god.
Thank you to each and everyone one of you, past and present, for allowing me the life that I have today. I cannot put into words how much gratitude I have for each and everyone of you.
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