What are we Fighting For?

When I was pregnant I got to thinking what it would be like to be married to someone in the armed forces and what it would be like to lose your husband in an act of war. I am not anti-military but I am anti-war. I do not believe that killing people is ever the answer.

There is so much honor and duty connected with fighting for your country and the pride that comes with that, but in the end, if the unthinkable happens, who does that help really?

I could not get this out of my head for several days, so I contacted a Photographer and we shot it.

Shot by Mark Rutherford, Hair and Make up by Peggy Lucas

I think people deal with world problems in different ways. They protest, they write about it, they sing about it, they even tweet about it. My Facebook feed is filled with VERY different views about what is right and wrong about the world today.

There is a song that has been getting quite a lot of air play lately. Some Nights by the band Fun. After about the 50th time hearing it I realized that it is actually about war. What are we fighting for?

How I dealt with my own emotion about this problem was to do this photoshoot and work to raise my children to be kind, aware, tolerant and brave.

I know this is a little heavier a topic than my “I hate to clean” posts but I wanted to share this project. At least the band’s name is Fun.

Do you have thoughts on how people cope with the “bigger issues”?

 

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6 responses

  1. The pictures are really beautiful. I can understand how the military can be a confusing issue for both civilian and military personnel. After spending 20 years in the military I have asked myself that very question many times. Not because it was confusing for me, but for people who have never been in the military. For myself and many others that served in the military it is about everything Ron talks about: human rights, responsibility, making the world a safer place. At one point in my career I spent time on the front lines providing food for the Kurds that were kicked out of Iraq. It is a really beautiful feeling to know that you can make a difference in the lives of people who are so suppressed. Although I am not in favor of war, I do believe that there is a place for the military in the world. What we are fighting for is human rights! When you have seen the poverty, the sickness, the suppression up close, it is comforting and almost exhilarating to be a part of destroying it. I never met anyone in the military that was not willing to give their life for another, and many have proudly given their lives so others can be free. I do not believe killing is the answer and most military people feel the same way, but sometimes it is necessary to keep the suppression at bay. It is hard to sometimes understand that proud feeling that military people feel, it’s like being able to confront on a very big level, a feeling of making a difference, and in the end it is worth it. It is worth bringing sanity to a place of insanity one piece at a time. Well thank you for letting me journal about that! It is a issue that is close to my heart! Thanks Jen! Kelly

    • Wow! I love reading your response. Thank you for your dedication in the military and the work that you did. I really do feel that most military men and women feel this way too and I really am appreciative of all their hard work and dedication. What was it like for you on the front lines?

  2. These are beautiful pictures I really love them. I feel the communication from you and the photographer. I deal with my own thoughts on bigger issues by communicating it in person with friends and my husband. When I was younger I would journal or write stories.

    • Thanks Amy. I was never able to journal when I was younger. I feel like I am making up for it with this blog!

  3. I really appreciate reading KellyJo’s response. It helps me cope with this issue, too. The way I deal with it in my daily life is to put on my blinders and face the person/people in front of me with the idea of improving the microcosm so that one day it may blend with others’ microcosm projects into a saner macrocosm. In other words, deal with the individual and simply trust it will spread to the group and Mankind.

    • I think that is a good idea too. You can’t allow yourself to get too overwhelmed with the world issues and then neglect the people who are right in front of you.

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