A 90 year old vet

I spent the day intrigued by a 90 year old guy named, "Leo." 

Only his third day in WWII, at Guadalcanal, Leo Nonn was captured. He was held in a Japanese prison camp in China, and then in Japan, for the next three years. 

Leo is still sharp and still proud to be a soldier. I saw in the Canoga Park Memorial Day parade in the American Legion Post 308 truck. 

I went over to the Legion afterward for a bbq. Leo was in his element, eating, drinking, and laughing with his old cronies. Good for you, Leo! 

This is what freaks me out. I know what three years are like. How many things can happen in that time. How much you can accomplish. How much you can grow. You can really do a lot in three years.

Leo gave three years of his life away. He didn't get to do anything. I can't imagine what hardship and pain he was put through in that camp. I can't imagine what it was like to sit there and expect you have a good chance of dying. Day after day. Night after night. 

I can't fathom how many of Leo's dreams; how much of his soul wasted away during those years. Yet, those weren't wasted years. 

Through the time, energy, and yes, often a part of your soul, guys like you, Leo, give a chunk of their life for guys like me. It wasn't a waste. You already know that. 

It is an inspiration. 

Thank you...