I Took A Knee: A Veteran’s Perspective

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Written by Matthew Mahler

I TOOK a knee.

I took a knee in the sand pits of Parris Island.
I took a knee in the forests of Camp Lejeune.
I took a knee beside rivers in south America.
I took a knee in the desert of Kuwait and in the cities of Fallujah, Ramadi, Hit, and a dozen other towns most will never know.
I took a knee on the decks of American ship.
I took a knee in the jungles of Japan, Thailand and the Philippines.
I took a knee in the Australian bush.
I took a drunk knee on the streets of San Francisco and NYC.

I took a knee beside a young dying women in Iraq.
I took a knee besides the body of my Corpsman.
I took a knee on a rifle range beside a recruit.
I took a knee besides a brother hurting.
I took a knee to hug my child goodbye before deployment.

I took a knee because I believed that by me taking a knee I was making the world better. I took a knee so someone else didn’t have to. I took a knee, but not out of disrespectful feelings. I took a knee because in doing so I was taking a stand. Take your stand or take a knee- just remember that theres a reason someone is kneeling and a reason others are standing.

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