Special Thanks to Those Who Serve

Dear Editor,
    I went to lunch yesterday with four guys from our department. At one table, there were three lieutenants in combat fatigues and each had a long, long face. I was going to try to do something to show my appreciation by buying their lunch anonymously. I stopped our waitress, showed her my credit card, and started, "That table with the servicemen …" and she interrupted, "Somebody already picked up their tab," which I thought was just so cool. As they rose to leave, I shook hands with the tallest one and said what I always say: "Thank you for your service." He said, "Thank you for your patriotism." You could have knocked me over with a feather. They had all been to the Middle East, and they were all going back in a few days. At this point, there was nothing to say … just nod, blink, and mouth the word "thanks."