dropped enough hints for his mother and I to know that he's considering a tour of duty in the military.  I must confess that I'm more than a bit frightened by the idea.  If Phil does enlist, there's a good chance that he'll go to Iraq or Afghanistan.  The very thought gives me chills.  Because part of me wants to keep my son home and safe, as far away from roadside bombs and violent insurgents as I can possibly arrange.  But another part of me understands that Phil must now make his own choices.  His mother and I have done everything we can to prepare him for the world.  Now it's up to him to decide what he believes in.  He must decide for himself what -- if anything -- he is willing to risk his life for.  It's not important that we always agree with his choices, and it's not necessary that we always understand them.  We have to believe in our son, and in his right to draw his own personal line in the sand.

When he spoke the words I've quoted here, Dr. Martin Luther King wasn't talking about Iraq, or about any other war.  He was a dedicated believer in non-violent resistance, so it's likely that he wasn't speaking in terms of physical conflict at all.  But the idea behind his words is valid beyond the context of the Civil Rights movement.  That idea has application even in a world that has not yet managed to live up to Dr. King's vision.  Because knowing what we are willing to die for is the ultimate measure of what we believe in.  And that is the only true measure of who we are.