Pictures Can Speak A Thousand Words

It is true that a picture can speak a thousand words. In the last few days I have seen two pictures that have tugged at my heart.

The first picture: Navy SEAL U.S. Navy Petty Officer 1st Class Jon T. Tumilson was among the 30 American troops killed August 6 when Taliban insurgents downed their Chinook helicopter with a rocket-propelled grenade. At his funeral in Iowa Tumilson lay in a coffin, draped in an American flag, in front of a tearful audience mourning his death in Afghanistan. Soon an old friend appeared, and like a fellow soldier on a battlefield, his loyal dog refused to leave him behind. Tumilson’s cousin took a picture of Tumilson's Labrador retriever, Hawkeye, dropping down by the casket with a heaving sigh at the beginning of the service

The second picture: A picture that was posted with a caption that said, "A lone Tomb Sentinel, 3d U.S. Infantry Regiment (The Old Guard), walks his tour in humble reverence during Hurricane Irene in Arlington National Cemetery, Va., Aug 27. Members of The Old Guard have guarded the Tomb every second, of every day regardless of weather or holidays since April 6, 1948."

According to the Society of The Old Guard's website, Tomb Sentinels "are completely dedicated to their duty of guarding the Tomb. Because of that dedication, the weather does not bother them. In fact, they consider it an honor to stand their watch (we call it "walking the mat"), regardless of the weather. It gets cold, it gets hot - but the Sentinels never budge. And they never allow any feeling of cold or heat to be seen by anyone."

These two pictures can teach us so much about loyalty and commitment. The pictures will stay in our hearts for a long time—if not forever.

Because pictures are so powerful it behooves all of us who are Esperanza educators to use pictures whenever we can.