The first medal awarded to the next of kin of servicemen killed in the line of duty was worn with pride by widow Karen Upton yesterday. She was presented with the Elizabeth Cross minutes before the funeral of her husband, Sergeant Major Sean Upton, 35, who was killed by a bomb in Afghanistan.
“I will wear this Elizabeth Cross in his honour with pride and will treasure it always, “ said the 32-year-old mother of two. “It is an absolute honour to receive the very first Elizabeth Cross in Her Majesty’s name and comforting to feel the support of Queen and country."
But it was in the simple words of a 10-year-old boy, grieving for the father whose life was snatched away far from home by a Taliban bomb, that the true nature of sacrifice was laid bare yesterday. Sean's son Ewan had written a heartbreaking poem in tribute to the dad he worshipped. It read:
My dad Sean, he was a hero
He was just like Rambo
He was the best, he beat the rest
But now he's gone, where is he?
Our dad, he's in our chest
We love you dad, we will never forget
You're a hero, you're the best.
I am continually humbled by the grace displayed by families of fallen soldiers, when one could so easily and rightly expect them to be seething with anger at their loss.
ReplyDeleteNo matter what may befall us on far away dusty plains or foreign fields, with people such as Mrs Upton, who could ever doubt the defeat of fanaticism and bigotry?
Mac
When a serviceman has died there is little place in most families for recriminations or anger against the government of the day for putting the serviceman in harm's way. What purpose would it serve? None. And it would only hinder the fallen man's family in coming to terms with his loss, and so prolong their grief.
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