Sargent York in WWI, Audy Murphy in WWII. Newsreels and movies richly honored them. It used to be the norm to see reports of the bravery and courage of those in our Armed Services:
Today, I ask “where are our heroes?” Why does our media refuse to show us the dedication and unselfishness of those that serve? Frankly, I believe it is partisanship, that the Powers-That-Be believe that by honoring our military is tacitly acknowledging something they do not wish to support – war.
This is not about supporting or opposing a war. This goes beyond politics. We need to keep in mind that their sacrifice, courage, bravery, and devotion (notions seemingly judged to be quaint nowadays) are qualities worthy of awe.
“Be proud of being an American. Our father came to this country, became a citizen because it was the right place for our family to be”. These are the words of Sergeant Rafeal Peralta’s last letter to his younger brother.
A Mexican immigrant, Peralta joined the Marines the day he received his green card. America was his all; hanging in his room were the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights. He proved his love of country on 11/15/04. Serving with Alpha Company, 1st Battalion, 3rd Marine Regiment, he was the embodiment of the Marine motto: Semper Fidelis (“Always Faithful”) – to his family, his squad and his adopted country.
Fallujah came into the American consciousness with images reminiscent of Somalia; American bodies burned and hung across a bridge. Located in the Sunni Triangle, it was filled with former Ba’athists and Islamic terrorists. Ruling as the Taliban did, their intent was to stop the upcoming elections. They turned the 1,000 city blocks into micro-fortresses. When it came time to clear the city of these Islamofacists, the Marines were responsible for clearing many of the buildings of those blocks. Dangerous work that was conducted one house, one flight of stairs, one room at a time. Sargent Peralta entered history that day in the third room of the fourth that day.
He opened the door, ready to clear the room of any terrorists. Unlike the first two rooms, this one was occupied. As it swung open, Peralta was immediately hit by the fire of jihadi AK-47s, shots registering in his body and face. He fell backward.
Taking him for dead, the other Marines stepped over him and rushed in, weapons firing. Suddenly, a foreign made grenade rolled back through the door, putting all of other Marines not directly involved in the firefight in mortal danger.
Except Peralta had not died in that opening salvo. He knew that if it went off, most of his brothers-in-arms would die. Quietly reaching out, he grabbed the grenade, and tucked it under him, his body absorbing the worst of the blast.
Without hesitation, he willingly made the ultimate sacrifice to save his buddies. That day, he joined that long, proud history of Marines that he had studied in Boot Camp who sacrificed their all for something greater than themselves – their fellow Marines. Instinctively, he put their needs before his. He demonstrated that he learned well the lesson that others mattered more than he. Like all the others struggling to earn the title of Marine during Boot Camp, he had heard and absorbed the examples of those who preceded him. He showed that sacrifice is not yet gone from our culture.
He has been nominated for the Congressional Medal of Honor.
Morale of the story? For some, there is none, for they will declare it a wasted life in an immoral war not seeing the moral of this story. For others, supreme gallantry. Some, a lesson to ponder.
For me? That there are times that call for standing for something larger than myself.
I was once asked if my country was good enough for which to die. While my answer was “Yes”, all I had to do was answer. Sargent Peralta answered that question and more, paying the cost in full without a blink.
It was later said to one of the other Marines "You’re still here, don’t forget that. Tell your kids, your grandkids, what Sergeant Peralta did for you and the other Marines today."
No, we will not forget.
