A Grieving Family Finds Comfort

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With all the stuff about Cindy Sheehan flying lately, I thought it would be nice to look at a story that ended well for a grieving family. This story is a little old, but it is worth sharing, as it demonstrates how our Commander-In-Chief has been personally trying to honor our fallen warriors and their families.

I've replaced the family name with "FAMILY", the mother's name with "MOTHER", the father's with "FATHER", the fallen warrior's name with "HERO-SON"... because, right now, the names are not important... what we should focus on is how, for a moment, the leader of the greatest nation on God's Earth helped a family deal with their sorrow. It is a heart warming story...

[[ Since learning in April that their son, HERO-SON, had been killed in Iraq, life has been everything but normal for the FAMILY family of HOMETOWN.

HERO-SON's parents, MOTHER and FATHER, as well as their three children, have attended event after event honoring the soldier both locally and abroad, received countless letters of support and fielded questions from reporters across the country.

But none of that prepared the family for the message left on their answering machine last week, inviting them to have a face-to-face meeting with President George W. Bush at Fort ARMY BASE, near NEARBY CITY.

Surreal soon seemed like an understatement, as the FAMILY- one of 17 families who met Thursday with Bush - were whisked in a matter of days to the Army post and given the VIP treatment from the military.

The 10 minutes of face time with the president could have given the family a chance to vent their frustrations or ask Bush some of the difficult questions they have been asking themselves, such as whether HERO-SON's sacrifice would make the world a safer place.

But in the end, the family decided against such talk, deferring to how they believed HERO-SON would have wanted them to act. In addition, FATHER noted that Bush wasn't stumping for votes or trying to gain a political edge for the upcoming election.

"We have a lot of respect for the office of the president, and I have a new respect for him because he was sincere and he didn't have to take the time to meet with us," FATHER said.

"I now know he's sincere about wanting freedom for the Iraqis," MOTHER said after their meeting. "I know he's sorry and feels some pain for our loss. And I know he's a man of faith."

The meeting didn't last long, but in their time with Bush, MOTHER spoke about HERO-SON and asked the president to make her son's sacrifice count for something. They also spoke of their faith.

The trip had one benefit that none of the FAMILY expected.

For a moment, life returned to the way it was before HERO-SON died. They laughed, joked and bickered playfully as they briefly toured Seattle.

For the first time in 11 weeks, they felt whole again.

"That was the gift the president gave us, the gift of happiness, of being together," MOTHER said. ]]

Now, here's some nice group photos that the family posted on their web site shortly after the meeting with the President. Unfortunately, they have since been taken down, and all that remains is the Google cache. Still, you can see the warmth and comfort that they all feel... especially when the President leans over to give a respectful kiss on the cheek to the mother, whose hand he is holding.









It sure is refreshing to hear such nice things about the President, especially in the midst of this DFL (Deranged Far Left) circus and all the hateful things Cindy Sheehan has said about him.

My favorite part is how they decided to honor their son's memory by conducting themselves "as he would have wanted them to act". That is dignity and class!

My prayers are with this family and the soul of their fallen warrior.

Here is the original story, if you want to read it. (LINK to story)

Is it just me...?

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