Black Friday

While reading various post and news stories over the Thanksgiving holidays all one seemed to find was news of the shopping madness of Black Friday.

Then I came across this photo.

Source of the original photo: http://cache.viewimages.com/xc/77981368.jpg?v=1&c=ViewImages&k=2&d=17A4AD9FDB9CF1936ED6F4FE2F3F40DC1C97CCB9C86F3152284831B75F48EF45

The little girl is the daughter of a soldier, Staff Sgt. John Linde that was killed in action early in November in Tal Al-Dahab, Iraq. He and three of his friends and co-troops were also killed that day. One of them an Army Medic on her third tour to Iraq, she left behind a husband and three sons.

Being a dad and a grandpa of a little girl about the same age, of course my heart went out to this little girl and her family. Dry eyes are hard to maintain here.

Don't have much to say about it other than while all the media was covering our shopping madness, this little girl was attending her father's burial at Arlington National Cemetery on November 23, 2007, other wise know as Black Friday. This date will always be the blackest Friday in her heart.

May His Peace be with her and the many other fatherless and motherless children this war is creating. Both American and Iraqi.