Veterans Day has always been a meaningful day in our house. Our sons grew up with two veterans in their family- grandfather (USMC Korea) and dad (USMC Vietnam) and both grew up to be veterans themselves (USAF Afghanistan and Iraq) . When they were in school, I was always surprised and sad when I realized that not all of their classmates even knew what a veteran was- it just meant a day off from school.
When I was in junior high, many of us had P.O.W. bracelets to honor the many Prisoners of War during the Vietnam years. I do not remember how long we wore them, but I do remember when we got to see many of them getting off the planes in 1973-finally home. For the time I wore the bracelet, I only knew the name of this hero. When the former prisoners returned home, I had a face to match to the name. LCDR Edward Davis was a navy pilot who flew 57 missions before being captured and held for 7 1/2 years. A hero.
I came across my bracelet recently and wanted to do a watercolor and with Veterans Day, this was the perfect time. I would like to thank Capt. Edward Davis USN (1939-2006). I would also like to thank my father-in-law, husband, and two sons for their service. Thank you to all our veterans past and present!
As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them. ~John Fitzgerald Kennedy
