One of my friends sent me a link to an article which included part of his father’s experience at Pearl Harbor:
 

The seaman first class was getting ready to attend Mass when a yellowish-green smoke began to fill the deck of the USS California. Soon after Vrana hurried to the top-deck of the ship a bomb slammed into mid-deck. He ducked for cover only to set his sights on a torpedo spiraling toward the ship. A few bombs and torpedoes later and the battleship began to sink and the entire harbor was aflame. Vrana managed to jump into the oil-slicked water and swim ashore.
 
“We must remember Pearl Harbor and Sept. 11 and all the young Americans fighting today for the same freedoms we’ve been fighting for throughout the ages,” Vrana said.

 
For a guy like me who has only read about Pearl Harbor in history books and seen some old videos, it’s a good wake-up call to hear from the real men who experienced that assault and to hear their perspective on the battles we face today as a nation.
 
May our Immaculate Mother pray for all veterans of our country, living and passed away.