“Land of the free, because of the brave” is a mantra that has often been reduced to a cliché tagline or a cute bumper sticker reminding us of our ‘Merican pride.
We’ve all heard it a million times.
But it’s moments like the one Mike Helm witnessed in Oklahoma City that remind us what it means to truly take on those words in flesh and blood.
Window seats may be coveted real estate on a plane, as they offer us majestic views that no aisle- or middle-seater could dare dream… but nothing could prepare Mike for the view he’d soak in the night he took that flight.
As he watched a fallen soldier reunite with her grieving family, Mike and every soul on the plane felt the weight of the fight for freedom that they’d too often taken for granted.