Thanksgiving Day One Year Later
November 22, 2006 started out as a normal day for my family and me. I was on vacation from work for the Thanksgiving Holiday and once we had the boys off to school; Melissa and I had a checklist of errands to complete for our Thanksgiving Celebration the next day. We arrived home around noon and began to unpack our groceries.I had gone upstairs for just a minute, when I heard a scream from outside…it was my wife, Melissa, and I knew something was terribly wrong. As I ran down the stairs and Melissa was flying in the house choking out that, the Marines were here….at that moment three Marines entered our house with tears in their eyes …we knew Heath was gone. In a split second on 11/22/2006, our family was forever changed and our world stopped….or so it appeared…but here we are nearly a year later.On this Thanksgiving Day, I am still thankful for the many blessings I have in my life. Melissa, Chandler and Ashton are my life and inspiration. Everyday we get up in a free country and we move ever so slowly forward. We are not the same family as before, but I think we will be better family in the end. Another thing I am thankful for is the hidden blessing that comes when your world stops. Everything is up for grabs. The things that were important to me on 11/21/06 were not on 11/22/06. Missed priorities, materialism, self-centeredness, ambition all fell away when we lost our Heath. Life is so subtle how it draws you in to its trappings and I was no exception. Since Heath’s death, we have had many opportunities to meet new friends and help people in new ways. We are thankful for our Gold Star families and the people all over the country that share their love, prayers and support. I am thankful for friends, family our church that have walked through the Valley of Death with us.On this Thanksgiving Day though, I am thankful for a young man, Pvt. Heath Warner, who I had the honor and privilege to be his dad. I am going to celebrate a life that fulfilled its purpose. On a split second on 11/22/06, Heath’s life was forever changed. He was greeted by the angels that took him to the arms of a heavenly Father that welcomed him home. H will forever be remembered as a hero.
You were a selfless, simple person to the end. We will forever remember the things that made you special to our family. No one looked more handsome and you carried yourself just so in your dress blues. You were so proud to wear them and to be a Marine. We will remember your smile and laughter, a sensitive spirit, and your sense of adventure and unique interests, the love for your brothers, parents and extended family, God and Country…We will remember talking politics…your thinking that the ATM machine is an unlimited supply of cash, stupid decisions and picking up the pieces, endless phone conversations and texting.
I know that while Heath was on top of that humvee that he was thinking of all of us. His family friends and fellow Americans. We love you Heath and thank you for your sacrifice. We thank you for the many years we had with you.
So on this Thanksgiving Day, I can still say thank you God for our many blessings and the gift freedom. May God Bless You, May God Bless America, and may God Bless our brave men and women who serve our Country.
Best wishes to you on this Thanksgiving Day.
November 23rd, 2007 at 6:48 am
Each moment is so precious. Thank you for reminding me to keep the priorities in order.
Janet