Love is a pervasive part of human life. We cannot imagine humanity without love. Actually, love can only be described as the rose in our belief, a realm of our heart that never withers. As a matter of fact, love has been the most dominant factor in the spirit of existence.
Having grown up with a learning disability that I did not know about until I was much older. I really struggled to get through school, mainly because back then, the school system was all about measuring up and with my condition, I could not measure up. Back then everything seemed to be about comparison, who is better than who, however, love showed me that that was not the case. I joined the military at the age of 18 years old when I was basically helpless as I had lost all hope.
I personally desired and yearned for love, and the only place that was demonstrating love was the military, it showed me that I was relevant and had something to offer. Love became real for me when I felt needed, and since I also needed the military, we were in it together. That’s what love does, it connects people together.
As a US Air Force Veteran, who has been married for the last 24 years, with no children, the Air Force taught me what love really is. Before then, love to me was just a word with various interpretations, however, the Air Force gave me a practical application of what love is really about. In the military, everyone has the same agenda, despite what your job is there is only one mission which is national defense. I was in the Air Force, but there were all these other branches: the Navy, the Marines, the National Guard, the Coast Guard, and the Army, we all had one objective we just had different tasks. Having the same objective is what really solidified our love, and at that moment it didn’t matter what your job was, because no matter what it was, it was significant to our mission.
Many people would tend to think that the military is full of bureaucracy, and redundancy. However, the point of the matter is that despite how big or small the military is the agenda never changes. And that right there is the first step to understanding how love works. Love is a source that connects us to each other since it does not speak to us as individuals but as a whole, and in all that we have different roles to play. Just like in the military, we have the same mission but the fact of the matter is that what I offer to the mission is completely different from what someone else is offering.
In the Air Force, I was an Air Cargo Specialist hence my mission towards defense was logistics. We transported troops and cargo all around the world, no matter what service you offered or branch of the military you were in, if you had to go somewhere we took you there. If it was some cargo that needs to be transported by air, we took it where it should be. That was the part I played, the part that I gave to the mission.
It was all about unity, that one connection to each other that’s love and that’s the purpose of love. Love is the only experience that this life requires because that’s the only way that things will work. And if we preserve the future through our actions today, we are influencing the future, just as history influenced our present. The ability to understand the things that connect us all is what love is all about. We cannot expect to move forward without this connection since humanity depends on us to love and in return love protects and preserves humanity. It’s all about protecting and preserving humanity through self-development. As human beings, we do have one thing in common, which is we cannot avoid humanity. We just have to value it enough to invest in it. We all have to learn just like I did that it’s not always about us no matter the situation or circumstance.
Having been married for 24 years, I have had challenges in my marriage just like anyone else out there. However, I have managed to resolve each challenge by realizing that everything is not always about me. One of the things that my wife and I have in common is the institution of marriage, and because we value the institution, it’s not about us as individuals but as a couple. Rank is another interesting factor, in the military, your rank is your pay grade not your ability to the mission. No matter if you are a Colonel, a Major, or a Lieutenant, the need is in your ability whether as a Doctor, or a Mechanic. The doctor needs the mechanic, and the mechanic needs the doctor. Your mission is the same as everyone else’s mission.
It’s the same case in marriage, it’s not about being equal but providing what’s necessary for the mission of your institution. Where I’m weak, she’s strong, and where she’s weak, I’m strong. That’s what love is and that was my experience. In the long run, it doesn’t matter who brought what as long as we have what we need to accomplish the mission. Since when the mission is accomplished, we all gain the same benefit: freedom and liberty. What I learned in the military is that there is no situation that cannot be addressed with love, all we have to do is remove our selfishness and everything will turn out to be perfect for humanity.
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