IF YOU’VE ever seen a fighter jet cut across the sky, you know what powerful looks like. You know what freedom sounds like. That roar overhead reminds us that we live in a country where people put their lives on the line so the rest of us can live without fear. They fly above land and sea, from coast to coast, from sea to shining sea, watching over the red, white, and blue.
This issue of Good News is dedicated to the brave — the ones who stepped forward when they didn’t have to. Who negotiated peace with strength. Who shook hands with people they never met and still called them “brother.” Who boarded boats and planes and tanks and flew into danger because protection is a calling of duty.
We salute our veterans not just for what they did but for what they made possible. Civility. Progress. A world where we can disagree and still shake hands at the end of the day. That handshake is not weakness. It’s quite the opposite.
Independence isn’t handed out. It’s fought for. And the people who have worn the uni- form, our veterans, carry that story everywhere they go. They are the reason the Stars and Stripes still wave. They are the reason we can gather around dinner tables, build businesses, fall in love, and sleep through the night without fear of bombs above or boots at the door.
Sometimes, honoring them means telling their stories. Sometimes it means listening. And sometimes it’s as simple as standing still, hand on heart, letting the wind catch the flag on a clear day, and knowing you are lucky to live here.
This is the Land of the Brave. GN
