Brock,

What a great question.

I don’t try to “deliver a message” when I tell people what I do / have done for a living.  I tell them my story…how I joined the Army for three years to earn money for college so I could then get “a real job.”  I explain how in high school I always thought that the people who joined the Service were just too lazy to get a job and didn’t want to “work” for a living.  I then continue to tell them how wrong I was about those that join the Army and what fantastic people Soldiers and their Families are and that because of that my three-year enlistment lasted 26 glorious years; how I met and married my wife, a woman that embodies what an Army Spouse is and how they (Army Spouses) sacrifice and work just as hard as we do; how I’ve been able to raise my children in diverse environments that allowed them to embrace cultural differences and have made them better people.

When they say thank you, I tell them that I appreciate it, but I also remind them that I’ve done it voluntarily, that nobody held a gun to my head or threatened me to serve…it was MY choice.  The Army has served me just as well as I’ve served it and I’m thankful for the life it has given me.

Finally, I tell them how humbled and thankful I have been for the last 10-15 years to see the thousands of young men and women still wanting to serve their country knowing they will be in harm’s way.  They truly are making this country greater (not great again, but greater).

I know this was a rant, but I hope it provides some food for thought for others to think about the question you’ve asked…composing an answer is worthy of their time.