These days, it's often women in uniform - moms, wives, even grandmothers - who deploy and leave their families behind.
I volunteered to deploy to Iraq. I was one of the few soldiers who were not on the mandatory deployment roster - close to 3,000 Hawaii soldiers were.
Looking at someone in a deployed setting, it's not in their best interest to get pregnant overseas, but if it happens, it happens.
When I deployed to Iraq with my fellow soldiers, putting our lives on the line for our country, no one in the media questioned our patriotism because of our religion.
I am a military police officer and I have served on two deployments; my first was to Iraq, in a medical unit, and my second deployment was to Kuwait, as a military police platoon leader.
Our actions to overthrow secular dictators in Iraq and Libya, and attempts now to do the same in Syria, have resulted in tremendous loss of life, failed nations, and even worse humanitarian crises while strengthening the very terrorist organizations that have declared war on America.
While in the Middle East, I saw how quickly religious sectarianism and bigotry can lead to the disintegration of a country - how leaders manipulate people to fear others who are different, who look different, or who have different beliefs.
Hawaii is a special place because we have a very diverse population there, who are very respectful and tolerant of those who have differing opinions and different views.
Disadvantaged communities are among the most vulnerable to climate change.
The cause of peace is too great for us to allow political disagreements or partisanship to stand in our way.
When a person thinks, I am a Christian, this other person is a Muslim, therefore he is my enemy, or I am a Muslim, this other person is a Hindu, therefore she is my enemy, they reveal their own lack of spiritual depth. No religion teaches this, and any understanding of any religion that adopts this divisive attitude proves itself false by doing so.
Sadly, the system in this country is rigged in favor of wealthy elites who have purchased tremendous influence in our government.
Every single American deserves to be treated equally by their fellow Americans and under the law.
I am a very firm believer in the Aloha spirit - respect and love for everyone, irrespective of their religion, race, sex, gender identity, or sexual orientation.
We must remember that this nation was founded by people fleeing religious persecution, risking everything to find a place to be free to worship as they chose or not to worship at all.
Nothing is more important to me, and nothing was more important to our founding fathers, than freedom of religion.
It's when we care for each other - choosing inclusion and love over division and hatred - that this great country is at its greatest.
No member of any 'grouping' should be judged by the activity of some other individual in that same grouping.
I am a practicing Hindu and have made no secrets about it.
Hopefully the presence in Congress of an American who happens to be Hindu will increase America's understanding of India as well as India's understanding of America.