TO THE MOON AND BACK
Do you think that love is strong enough to change the world? Do you think that it's possible to love someone so much that your love for them is capable of lighting up the world to where it can be seen from space? A six year old boy believed this, and his belief, coupled with the love in his heart, recently made this very thing happen.
Have you ever loved someone so much that it hurt? So much so that you felt that love in your stomach? This feeling could have come from making love with, or even just holding hands with somebody. Or maybe you got this feeling as you held your newborn child for the first time, and the awesome awareness of what a little miracle they were completely overwhelmed you. Or maybe you experienced this feeling of love when you prayed to, or worshiped God. All of these situations that I've just described are very different, but the one common denominator they possess is the unmistakable feeling of love. Because it doesn't matter if you're holding your child, in the arms of your lover, or on your knees to your creator...love, is love, is love. It's the same emotion, no matter the circumstance, and no matter what your race, beliefs, or socioeconomic status may be.
But the same thing that makes you laugh can make you cry.
Have you ever lost someone that you love and felt broken and lost behind your grief? It may have been a parent or sibling, or it may have been a child. Or it may have been a pet, which sometimes brings about grief that's unequaled to the loss of a human. The love that brought you joy and euphoria is the same love that brings you pain, anger, and despondency...emotions that are capable of leading to darkness and self-destruction if you let them.
But sometimes pain and suffering has the ability to produce joy if you'll allow it to take this course. Love is capable of such a thing.
There is no love like the love of a child. It's a love that's pure and untarnished by the opinions and dogma of the world. It's a love that forgives and holds no grudges; a love that always hopes and keeps the faith. It was this kind of love that six year old Darren Baysore had for his father, Staff Sgt. Thomas A. Baysore, Jr. The two of them used to spend hours together, and at night they would sit outside and look at the moon while they talked. Sgt. Baysore would put his arm around his son as they sat on the porch of their home in Clarksville, Tennessee, and he would tell him, "I love you to the moon and back."
Staff Sgt. Baysore was assigned to 1st Battalion, 506 Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, of the 101st Airborne Division out of Fort Campbell, Kentucky. Before he left for his 3rd tour in Afghanistan, he was sitting outside with his son the night before he left, and he pointed up at the moon and told him, "You can talk to the moon as if it were me and I will get the message." Unfortunately, this would be the last time that he would get to sit with his son. On September 26, 2013, while in the Patktya Province of Afghanistan, he was shot and killed by an enemy combatant.
On the day that his father died, Darren's mother, Jamie, told him that his father would split his time between Heaven and the moon. On the night that he died, Darren asked his mother if they could leave their porch light on so his dad could see it.
Last week, to commemorate the death of his dad, six year old Darren Baysore used his love to light up the world. Through social media, he asked the people in Clarksville, and others all over the world, to turn on their lights that night so, "Daddy could see that I love him." People from Clarksville to Afghanistan honored his wish, then posted pictures of it on Facebook. Pictures of people saluting the camera ranged from children in the United States, to active duty service men and women in Afghanistan. They did this to honor the love that one little boy has for his father. A love that survived even death. A love that for one night, lit up the world. To The Moon and back.
Do you think that love is strong enough to change the world? Do you think that it's possible to love someone so much that your love for them is capable of lighting up the world to where it can be seen from space? A six year old boy believed this, and his belief, coupled with the love in his heart, recently made this very thing happen.
Have you ever loved someone so much that it hurt? So much so that you felt that love in your stomach? This feeling could have come from making love with, or even just holding hands with somebody. Or maybe you got this feeling as you held your newborn child for the first time, and the awesome awareness of what a little miracle they were completely overwhelmed you. Or maybe you experienced this feeling of love when you prayed to, or worshiped God. All of these situations that I've just described are very different, but the one common denominator they possess is the unmistakable feeling of love. Because it doesn't matter if you're holding your child, in the arms of your lover, or on your knees to your creator...love, is love, is love. It's the same emotion, no matter the circumstance, and no matter what your race, beliefs, or socioeconomic status may be.
But the same thing that makes you laugh can make you cry.
Have you ever lost someone that you love and felt broken and lost behind your grief? It may have been a parent or sibling, or it may have been a child. Or it may have been a pet, which sometimes brings about grief that's unequaled to the loss of a human. The love that brought you joy and euphoria is the same love that brings you pain, anger, and despondency...emotions that are capable of leading to darkness and self-destruction if you let them.
But sometimes pain and suffering has the ability to produce joy if you'll allow it to take this course. Love is capable of such a thing.
There is no love like the love of a child. It's a love that's pure and untarnished by the opinions and dogma of the world. It's a love that forgives and holds no grudges; a love that always hopes and keeps the faith. It was this kind of love that six year old Darren Baysore had for his father, Staff Sgt. Thomas A. Baysore, Jr. The two of them used to spend hours together, and at night they would sit outside and look at the moon while they talked. Sgt. Baysore would put his arm around his son as they sat on the porch of their home in Clarksville, Tennessee, and he would tell him, "I love you to the moon and back."
Staff Sgt. Baysore was assigned to 1st Battalion, 506 Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team, of the 101st Airborne Division out of Fort Campbell, Kentucky. Before he left for his 3rd tour in Afghanistan, he was sitting outside with his son the night before he left, and he pointed up at the moon and told him, "You can talk to the moon as if it were me and I will get the message." Unfortunately, this would be the last time that he would get to sit with his son. On September 26, 2013, while in the Patktya Province of Afghanistan, he was shot and killed by an enemy combatant.
On the day that his father died, Darren's mother, Jamie, told him that his father would split his time between Heaven and the moon. On the night that he died, Darren asked his mother if they could leave their porch light on so his dad could see it.
Last week, to commemorate the death of his dad, six year old Darren Baysore used his love to light up the world. Through social media, he asked the people in Clarksville, and others all over the world, to turn on their lights that night so, "Daddy could see that I love him." People from Clarksville to Afghanistan honored his wish, then posted pictures of it on Facebook. Pictures of people saluting the camera ranged from children in the United States, to active duty service men and women in Afghanistan. They did this to honor the love that one little boy has for his father. A love that survived even death. A love that for one night, lit up the world. To The Moon and back.