My daughter is back in school and learning vocabulary words. One of the phrases she has to memorize is “life cycle.” According to the sheet they sent home, a life cycle is defined as “stages in the life of plants, animals and people.”
As with most things coming out of second grade, this got me to thinking.
I thought of a seminar I attended last night, and the audience was full of severely wounded and injured veterans. When asked what they would like to see changed in the program they were part of, they did not mention money or benefits or new computer equipment. Instead, they said they wanted to give back to earlier generations. They discussed partnering with the local veterans home, and doing what they could improve the lives of WWII, Korea and Vietnam veterans.
They were young veterans in the Wyakin Warrior program, and many the organization’s volunteers come from older generations. So the Wyakin Warriors wanted to give back to the very generations who are helping them transition into civilian careers.
It is the cycle of life.
It made me proud to know them. They made me feel humble, and grateful for the opportunity to work with them.
And being pretty close to the age of the veterans the Wyakin Warriors wanted to help, I couldn’t help but feel a little old too.
