Let War Happen

“For after all, the best thing one can do when it is raining is let it rain.”

―Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

           This is one of my favorite quotes by Longfellow. It speaks a great truth about life, and to be quite honest, it speaks a great truth about war. Think about it: when it rains, not one person has control over starting and stopping the rain. To me, war is just the same to soldiers. When soldiers are required to go to war, there isn’t much they can do about it. They can prepare, train, and work hard to prep themselves for battle, but in the end, they have to let war be war. Let me share a story with you.

Several years ago, I remember entering into my freshman year of high school. It was a big social change for me; for I felt the safety that middle school had granted me. I never was a student that got into fights with my peers. I was one to get along with everyone. After all, is there any reason to get mad over things? About one month into my high school journey, I remember seeing a fight. It was a lunch of all places. Typical, I know. Like middle school, fights were something that occurred often; however, these fights were much more aggressive than fights I had witnessed in my earlier years as a student. Instead of pushing, shoving, and yelling, there was a much more aggressive state of punching, kicking, and screaming. There was blood. Now, let me back up for just a second. Ever since I knew what the color red looked like, I have hated blood. The site of blood makes me nauseous. It literally freaks me out. The case was no different for me the day of this fight in high school. As soon as the first drop of blood was in view, I ran to the restroom, and well, you can fill in the blanks. I had never seen anything like this in person before. I only thought blood happened in fights on television. After seeing this fight, remembering that this was the first fight I ever witnessed in high school, all fights seemed to have this same trend. Blood became a very common thing in the fights I saw. Nevertheless, I had to let the fights happen; I didn’t have control over them.

Everyone in the United States remembers the haunting tornado incident back in April of 2011. It was a devastating, horrific time for many states, including Alabama and Georgia. Homes were torn to pieces, lives were lost, and many lives were forever changed. Not one person had any control over the incidents of those events. No one started it, and no one certainly could stop it. No matter how many storm shelters there were, the best things anyone could do were to take as much cover as they could, and let the weather take over.

Having a fear of the unknown, especially in a grueling situation such as war or a natural disaster, can cause people’s lives to being on a new journey. In many of these incidents, if not all, some lives are brought anew by ending. It’s a terribly thing to think about, but it does happen. After all, it’s a part of life; everyone knows that. However, it is understanding that fact in which people have a hard time dealing with death. The best thing to do when people die, is let them die.

Soldiers have no choice but to accept the horrors of war. They could possibly escape it through their minds, but they cannot go home at the end of the day like many people that have nine to five jobs five days a week. If all war were to cease, the world, and especially those soldiers in combat, would be thrilled. However, that will probably never be the case as long as the planet exists. The reason? Everyone doesn’t get along with one another. Let me say that again, because everyone doesn’t always get along! It’s a fact. Just like death is a part of life, differences are apart of life also. They always have gotten in the way of a worldly unified peace, and they will always play their part in arguments, fights, and certainly in the grand scheme of war. Supposedly there has been talk of peace in the past few years. Has it happened yet? No. So, the best thing we can do when wars, known as fights, happen is to let the fights happen.

Now, I am not here to try to change anyone person’s view on war. I am just accepting fact for what it is. No, I don’t like war. There, I said it, but because war is a part of my life, I have to accept it for what it is. I can’t change it, I can’t become in control of the world, and I certainly can’t make any country change their view on it. No, this isn’t the most pleasant article you’ve ever read. I promise you that, but the facts are true. So just remember: Even though you, or myself, aren’t out there in combat fighting the war we are in now, someone is in the place of you. The reasons? They love this country, and they love you. So, let war happen.