“They will come again under higher bidding and will know their place and name. This Army will live, and live on. So long as soul shall answer soul, so long as that flag watches with its stars over fields of mighty memory.”

Those are the stirring words of a man that has seen combat. Lots of combat. He has held many a young fellow Mainer in his arms as they gave his last words of this earth.

He was our own General Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, commander of the 20th Maine at Gettysburg and countless other horrific battles.

He and all of his men share a common honor, like all veterans who have seen combat. They threw everything into the wind — including life itself — for the God-ordained, Biblical principle of “preferring others before yourself.”

This writing may seem as something that should be presented for Memorial Day instead of Veterans Day. To me, however, they are indeed one and the same.

I am moved to tears just thinking about men and women who suffered loss of life and limb, saw their brothers in arms mutilated so that I can take my kids to the beach and enjoy a day in the sun.

They sacrificed so that I can come and go as I please, go from one end of this great land to the other without being questioned. I can raise my children as I please and pursue my interests freely and my children can pursue theirs.

I see these older guys walking down the sidewalk on the green in Brunswick or shopping at Hannaford, they wear their hats with pride, World War II, Midway, Korea and Vietnam. I am honored to stop and thank these older gentlemen for their service. One must go lightly shaking their arthritis-ridden hands but their shining eyes show an iron-tough man within.

Then there are our younger ones. The Gulf wars, Iraq, Afghanistan. There are the unseen ones.

The combat nurse and, more recently, our young ladies who have seen frontline combat in Afghanistan and Iraq, I have had the privilege of meeting some of these women. I knew a magnificent lady who was a forward-area combat nurse in the European Theater in World War II. She not only treated our guys but she, even being Jewish, treated a wounded SS officer at the end of the war with equal medical ethic and professionalism. Amazing.

It is the opinion of this writer that sleazy politicians in the highest places in our government would have to wear a diaper if they were to even get near a livefire exercise, never mind actual combat. Their names are not worthy to mention in this writing.

During the government shutdown, they closed memorials that had never been closed before during a government shutdown. The orders came straight from the White House — so says The Daily Caller.com, Breitbart.com, Heritage.org and Sarah Palin in an article at the Huffington Post. However, our veterans stood proud as always, and we real Americans stood with them. After all, men are bigger than mice, are they not?

Please remember this precious segment of our society this Veterans Day.

Put up the flag with pride with an understanding that, despite what the far Left says and does, this is still the greatest nation that the world has ever known.

Our veterans have not only protected our freedoms but also have liberated millions upon millions of people, entire nations, from the most horrific tyranny. Had America not intervened against the Nazis, the entire world would be today under the most horrific conditions.

Had not those 300-and-some men from Maine not held off 10 times their number at Gettysburg, our country may have ceased to exist at that time.

So, if you if you see one of these guys or gals in passing during your day, don’t be shy.

A quick “thank you for serving our country” goes a long way.

You see, it is not that these people are looking for compliments. They are certainly not. But it might make veteran think that people still do care about their sacrifice.

It may make them think of a fallen brother in arms, that there are people today who will never forget them.

EDWARD A. THARP lives in Woolwich.