IN REMEMBRANCE OF LCPL JASON NICHOLAS BARFIELD

Rickey Stokes

Viewed: 2536

Posted by: RStokes
Date: May 27 2018 12:56 AM

"GREATER LOVE HATH NO MAN THAN THIS,THAT A MAN LAY DOWN HIS LIFE FOR HIS FRIENDS"...This Memorial Day, take a moment, a moment of silence to remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice; selflessly giving their very own life, trading in their tomorrow for our today, for each of you and for me. They left behind their family and friends to mourn them, miss them, love them, to never forget them, to always remember them, leaving us to share their story and to say their name,,,,May their legacy live on and may we NEVER, EVER forget the sacrifice they made...There is no greater love....

In remembrance of my precious son, LCPL JASON NICHOLAS BARFIELD KIA, 2011 Helmand Province-Sangin District and for the grandfather that I was robbed of; the father my mother has no recollection of other than through photos, because she was only 3 years old when he selflessly gave his life. My grandfather was the husband and soul mate to my grandmother whom she grieved & mourned for deep inside until she took her last breath back December of 2002, just 2 days before Christmas Day; 57 years later. In those 57 years she never remarried, nor do I remember her ever dating; which, in my opinion, leaves me to never question or doubt that he was indeed her soul mate. My grandfather & great-grandfather whom Jason is named after is, SSG JASON FRANKLIN HILL, KIA, 1945 Okinawa, Japan. He was on his second enlistment when he selflessly gave his life, giving up his tomorrow’s, giving up the life he would have had with his wife & soul mate whom he had vowed to love, cherish & protect, through the good & bad; with the promise that through it all, with the days of today & the tomorrows of the future that were yet to come, they would do it all together. From the stories I’ve heard, he was just as proud to have became a father, actually a first time dad; a title he cherished. Unfortunately, being a new parent was short lived. My mother was only 3 when he was killed. When going through pictures not too long ago, I realized my mother had to have been just a toddler when he last saw her or even held her. My grandfather had been deployed almost her whole entire young life!!!!

On this MEMORIAL DAY, take a moment of silence, a moment to remember those who selflessly gave up their hopes & dreams. Some robbed of ever being married or ever knowing that feeling of wonderment that you feel when you become a parent, whether it be biologically or through adoption, it doesn’t matter, there’s no other feeling in the world that can truly describe this feeling that only a parent can understand or feel. Mother’s & father’s taken to darkest pit of grief that only another parent who has walked in those same shoes can relate or understand...Sister’s and brother’s losing a sibling that not even a parent can understand because it’s different for them or unless they have lost a sibling at some point in their life...Families left behind to face each day without their loved one. These families are left behind to face the holidays without their loved one because there will always be that reminder; THE EMPTY CHAIR...Friend’s left behind to mourn the loss of a friend that may have been more like family than just a friend and some may have been an acquaintance, yet more than a stranger...Then, there are those who were a mere stranger, having never met your loved, but grew to know them through others that speak their name and tell their stories about the sacrifice they made when they made the ultimate sacrifice, which brings me back to this..."GREATER LOVE HATH NO MAN THAN THIS, THAT A MAN LAY DOWN HIS LIFE FOR A FRIEND"...Before giving their life, our loved ones (sons, daughters, husbands, wives, cousins or friends) didn’t stop to think about whom they were dying for...THAT’S GENUINE, UNCONDITIONAL & EVERLASTING LOVE....

MEMORIAL DAY IS A DAY OF REMEMBRANCE...Remembering those who fought for our freedom, our way of life, for our dreams & hopes of the future...They gave up their tomorrows for us to have our todays...Let us remember and never forget...

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