I
am thankful to our veterans, and the men and women in uniform, who risk their
lives in defending our freedom and guarding our safety. I have always made a
point to salute them, and certainly appreciate the Memorial Day. I have made trips to the DFW Airport to welcome the returning soldiers as well.
Robert E Lee through my Son and Daughter, he is their great,
great, great uncle through their mother and I have stopped at his statute in DC
to pay my tribute to his heroic role in the civil war.
It was a joy to see this
young man Syed Ghalib with his wife Ashreen Ghalib in the parade (top picture). Ghalib has served in the US Airforce in the
mid to late nineties, indeed, he was one of the first Desi Kids (People from south Asia
comprising India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka) in the Dallas Fort
Worth Metroplex to have served, I was proud of him then, and am proud of him now watching him march in the parade.
At that time, I was a publisher of Asian News, a weekly magazine in Dallas and
wrote about Ghalib on the front page. He is here again on my facebook and my blog, he is the headline picture in
the parade for me, and the Immigrants from South Asia. I dedicate this note to all the veterans and Ghalib.
In the first fourteen years in Dallas, I pretty much stayed to myself, my family and business and did not get out and meet any Desi on a social basis. After 14 years of Vanvas (culturally, the number 14
signifies Vanvas; Ram, the Hindu King in epic Ramayana was exiled to forest for 14 years) in the United States, I met Syed Talib, Ghalib’s father, one of the first few Desi’s I met. He invited me to celebrate Ramadan with his family, and finally, I got to eat my favorite Seviyaan (angel
hair noodles) after nearly 14 years. So Ghalib and his family remain dear to me, even though I don’t get to see them in years.
previous write up was dedicated to three of my friends and my brother in law
Noor Mohamed; an India Army Veteran. Colonel
Yogeshwar Dayal and I have learned to respect each others’ views on the face
book for over two years; he has served the Indian Army. Colonel Sher Suleman
was in Dallas several years ago and is a participant in one of my forums and he
simply floors me with this wisdom on issues, and he has served the Pakistani
Army. Colonel Ken Scarborough has served the US Army, he and I have worked together
some 15 years ago at my Company, and now we are friends on facebook and have
learned to be respectful of each other’s opinions, both of us are Republicans
but he is on the conservative side and I am on the moderate. We write
things that are not palatable to each other, but our friendship does not allow
the politics become a barrier, it is a good thing. Their comments are
included at http://nabsites.net/demo/veterans-day-parade-meadowmere-park/
is coming up within ten days; please plan on making the day, a good one for you
and the people around you. If you have the time, please visit planning the
thanksgiving at http://nabsites.net/demo/thanksgiving-planning/
I
appreciate the veterans all around the world, even if they are enemies of my
nation, they are really not our enemies, they are simply serving and doing what
is asked of them. We have to admire them for fulfilling their duty. The wars
are waged by politicians and not the soldiers, and as a part of civilization we
need to put a leash on our politicians, but must continue to honor our
veterans. It is not easy to be out on the field, away from their loved ones, and
having their back for the fellow soldiers.
writer on pluralism,
politics, peace making, foreign policy, Islam, interfaith, and
cohesion at work place or social settings. He is committed to building a Cohesive America and offers
pluralistic solutions on issues of the day at www.TheGhousediary.com. Mike has a
strong presence on national local TV, Radio and Print Media, and is a frequent
guest on Sean Hannity
show on Fox TV, and a commentator on national radio networks, he contributes
weekly to the Texas Faith Column at Dallas Morning
News, fortnightly at Huffington post, and
several other periodicals across the world. His personal site www.MikeGhouse.net indexes everything you
want to know about him.