My nephew is coming home in a coffin but he did not die to preserve your freedoms, laments Missy Comley Beattie
Sunday, August 21, 2005
He is number 1,828, 1,829 or 1,830. We don't know for sure, because so many died last week.
Marine Lance Cpl. Chase Johnson Comley died when his vehicle was hit head-on by a suicide bomber. His death admits his family to a club no one wants to join: the grieving, questioning families who have heard the dreaded ring of the doorbell followed by a messenger's words, "We regretfully inform you that your son ..."
You realize that nothing you've thought, done or felt has prepared you for this reality. The feeling is so much worse than a broken heart. It is an evisceration.
As I write, Chase is being flown to Dover Air Force Base. His 6-foot-4 body is in a coffin draped with the U.S. flag. He loved his family, his country, his high school classmates and his life, but we don't think he loved his mission in Iraq.
more...
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/05233/556987.stmHeartbreaking. Must read.