Church of the Big Sky

Yeah, I cry over the Military History channel January 6, 2008

Flipping channels tonight, I stopped on Military History when I saw they were running a doc on women pilots in combat. These women are the successors to my mother and her friends and colleagues – women flying B1 bombers, women flying off carriers, facing the same dangers the male combat pilots face. Earnest women – I see the same straightforward, common sense determination on their faces, in their voices, that I recall from my mother and from her fellow WASP when I met them at reunions.

The documentary ran a fairly lengthy segment on the WASP. I’m always squinting and scouring footage to see if I catch a glimpse of my mom. But, she was shy and not likely to make herself available for film. I got angry when the narrator spoke of the lousy Rush Limbaughs and Sean Hannity-types of the day who castigated the WASP as a joke, unworthy of military status, and even suggested they weren’t “real” pilots. They even showed political cartoons of the era that mocked these amazing, brave women. I hadn’t seen those before – they infuriated me.

But it was when the documentary returned to our day that I fell to pieces – as those earnest women, combat pilots, heirs to my mother’s true estate, spoke of how much they owe the WASP for paving the way to the lives they lead, the careers they cherish.

That was cool. And a little heartbreaking. Wish Mom was here to have heard that.

Yep. I roll my eyes at most chick flicks and don’t own a single pair of heels. But you catch me at the right moment, and I weep like a baby over the Military History channel.

And I watched football tonight.

Do I get an honorary “guy” card?