Dear Vietnam Veteran,

Turning 18 scares a lot of people due to the responsibilities they soon have to face. However, I don’t know that any of them should be scared in comparison to what what you had to face at that same young age.

As we move into our lives with the everyday worries of finances, schooling, and careers, those of us who have not served must take the time to step back and think about how forty-three years ago the worry was whether or not our soldiers would come back home. Those soldiers wondering if they would live to see another day. While we race from leisurely events to other obligations, it gets difficult to put ourselves into the shoes of our veterans that raced from one death-enduring spot to another unsure of what tomorrow would bring.

Welcome home, welcome back to the America that you have been able to retain for us. Welcome to this normality that none of us could imagine straying from. Thank you for your service and risk that allows us to live the way we do with the fellow people we love and call family. Thank you for granting us the right to live careless and free and allowing us to experience the life this country is built on. Although it is long overdue, we welcome you back to a peaceful, free United States of America that you have turned from a mass of land into a home and lifestyle.

My name is Sabrina and I’m a junior in high school deciding what to do with the rest of my life. It often slips my mind that I get to make those decisions because of your service and the fellow Veterans service which we are eternally grateful for.