Over the past few years, “Thank you for your service” seems to have changed from an expression of heartfelt appreciation into an empty sounding feel-good platitude. I am tired of hearing this expression voiced by our politicians and pundits over and over and over and over again. I have the same opinion when this expression is used over and over for our first responders – our firefighters and police officers.
It often strikes me that the people using this phrase do so in a self-serving way to demonstrate their patriotism and political correctness, or out of a sense of social obligation. I listen to them mouth the phrase, but I know that most are so far removed from the sacrifices that our service personnel and first responders have made or may have to make that the phrase ends up meaning nothing.
Sometimes it seems that the use of this phrase allows people to avoid the need to understand and truly appreciate what service, and the sacrifice that is sometimes required in its performance, really means.
I wonder what our service personnel and first responders think about this phrase and those who use it every chance they get. Does this phrase mean anything to them anymore, or does it sound just as emotionally empty as someone saying “have a nice day!”?
I am fully aware and very appreciative that some of our military personnel can and do experience terrible injury, stress disorders, and other consequences of their service. I am also aware of the dangers and stress involved in responding to fires or criminal activity. It is a terrible tragedy when people are killed or injured in the line of duty, or are emotionally scarred by their experiences. Calling these people our heroes, acknowledging their sacrifices, and doing what we can to address their needs and the needs of their families is absolutely the right thing to do and must be done.
I understand the argument that our military personnel and first responders risk their lives to keep us safe and to protect our way of life, and are therefore somehow special and uniquely deserving of our gratitude.
However, there are countless other people who dedicate their lives to helping others such as nurses, teachers, and social workers. There are people who sacrifice their personal lives to work far away from their families. There are people who work dangerous jobs and risk injury every day. Why do we not thank them for their service and the sacrifices that they make?
At the end of the day, we all spend our lives working for a living one way or another. Most of us don’t receive any special recognition for our efforts and commitment. Maybe it’s about time that we begin thanking each other for our service to one another.