A Buffalo Soldier Died Today!
A Buffalo Soldier died today, and when he did a mother and a father lost a son; siblings lost a brother; nieces and nephews lost an uncle. His wife lost her husband; the community lost a neighbor and his associates lost a friend. Now you might ask me; Trooper Jones, isn’t that basically what happens anytime someone dies? Yes it is! But this was a Buffalo Soldier. We as a people lost a role model and this Nation lost another hero.
A role model and a hero. Think about these words; let them roll around in your mind until you’ve created a concept of understanding about their definitions, their meaning and what it truly takes to be, a role model and a hero. Now think of someone you know personally who is your role model or your hero. You’ll know that you have reached the correct understanding when you begin to feel a tingle that starts at the base of your neck and runs down your spine with a shiver that causes your shoulders to do the shimmy shake, and you whisper, “Oh my, I know someone like that!”
Basically, a role model is someone who is worthy of imitation. Alright, that makes sense. But how does one become worthy? Well, a worthy person is someone who has “qualities or abilities that merit recognition in some way.” Merit? How does someone merit anything? As it turns out merit is the quality of being deserving. You become deserving by your actions. In other words, you “earn” it.
Okay, we have arrived at the base word that I think we can all understand. Earn! If we do our chores we earn playtime, if we do our homework we earn good grades and if we do our job we earn a salary. There are no shortcuts to earning. You have to do the time!
A role model is someone who has done the time in such a way, that they have become deserving... they merit... they are so worthy of our respect and admiration that we view them as a Role Model.
A Buffalo Soldier died today! His name was: Trooper Robert L. McDaniel - WWII Veteran, U.S. Army - 4th Calvary Brigade, 2d Calvary Division, 9th Calvary Regiment. He was one of the few remaining original Buffalo Soldiers from a bygone era. There aren’t that many of them left. You owe it to yourself to get to know a Buffalo Soldier, before they are all gone. I knew one, and now he’s gone!
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