As I started this post, it was my intent to say thank you to all those who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country. After several false starts, I realized that the reason I was having such a hard time expressing my thoughts was because the words “thank you” feel so damned insignificant.

Photo by Brett Seymour, NPS	… because to simply say “thank you” is not nearly enough.
… because to say “my thoughts and prayers are with your families is not enough”.	Photo by Brett Seymour, NPS
Photo by Larry Murphy, NPS	… because the words “thank you” will be so easily forgotten before the sun next sets over Pearl Harbor.

Actions speak louder than words and in this case, truer words have never been spoken. As Americans, living our lives in a way that honors all of the brave men and women who gave their all for this country should be something we do without pause or question.

I pledge to always give my gratitude and undying support to all the men and women of the U.S. military who continue to serve, for they are the ones who most honor what you died for on that fateful Sunday morning. They are the ones who continue to carry the torch of freedom that passed down by those who went before them. They are the ones who will stand tall for everything that’s still good and right about this country, who will fight for what we believe in, who will give their own lives to make the world a better place — not just for Americans, but for all of God’s creatures who believe a free world is the only world worth living in.

Rest in peace, knowing that your beacon of hope still burns bright as ever in our hearts.

Sailors honor men killed during the
7 December 1941 Japanese attack
on Naval Air Station Kaneohe, Oahu

References:
Time Line of Events
Casualty List
USS Arizona Preservation Project
USS Arizona Memorial
USS Utah Memorial