Memorial Day is a day of remembrance. It is a day to remember the sacrifice given by members of the American Military for the purpose of protecting the American idea of liberty. From the recent combat in the Middle East, all the way back to the American Revolution. They fought for freedom, and asked nothing in return but to be remembered.
In 2000, my wife and I visited the USS Arizona memorial in Hawaii. As I entered, I removed my hat, slowly approaching the names on the bulkhead, reading them carefully. Remembering these men I never met.
In 2002 I visited the Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia, near Washington DC, stopping at one point while at the cemetery to observe the ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. My wife and I walked the entire grounds, appreciating those that gave their life for their country.
Every year I observe Memorial Day with a moment of silence, and a visit to the Riverside National Cemetery, where my Grandfather, Thurman Clark, is buried. He fought in World War II as a part of the Army-Air Corps. This year, I also visited Paul Young, my dear friend that died over a year ago, who served briefly in the United States Army.
Memorial Day is about those fighting men of the American Revolution that were a ragtag collection of farmers, store owners, and businessmen who weren't exactly sure what they had gotten themselves into; about a young nation's military that stormed the shores of Tripoli during the Barbary Wars to protect America's trade routes; about the second revolution during the War of 1812 when once again invaders came to America's shores; about those brave soldiers that fought to support Americans during the westward expansion; about those that fought in the Mexican-American War and in some cases made their last stand at a dusty fort overrun by the enemy; about Americans who fought fellow Americans in a bloody civil war that defined America's resolve to truly reveal the meaning of the phrase: All Men Are Created Equal; about the rough riders that stormed San Juan Hill; about the brave warriors in a war that America did not have to enter in Europe, a war so bloody it was hoped it would be the war to end all wars; about the greatest generation as they gave their lives in yet another defense of freedom in Europe, and this time also in the Pacific; about the Americans that served to stop the spread of communism in Korea and Vietnam, about those Americans that gave their lives during the Cold War that turned out to be a war that was often not so cold after all; about those Americans that served in the Persian Gulf at a time before we fully understood what we were up against when it came to Islam; about those Americans that extended, or entered service, after September 11, 2001 for the purpose of defending this nation against an enemy we still understood very little regarding; about the gunfire in the Muslim village, and the explosions on the lonely roadway, as our brave troops fought in Iraq fighting for the freedom of people they didn't even know; about those that gave their lives in other locations around the Middle East as we worked to make sense of a deceptive enemy; about those that have died in Afghanistan doing what they can to wrap up a promise to address the terror that held Americans hostage in 1979 and toppled towers in 2001, and about the four Americans killed in Benghazi, Libya when Islamists violently attacked them on the 2012 anniversary of 9/11.
Memorial Day is about our fallen. It is a day for prayers and reflection. It is about thanking those we can no longer thank in person. It is about visiting the cemeteries where they lie, dropping off flowers and American Flags at their graves. Kneeling in prayer, and dropping tears on their name plates as we remember their sacrifice.
Memorial Day is about the defense of an idea called freedom, and remembering those that gave their lives to protect that idea.
Memorial Day is about those fighting men of the American Revolution that were a ragtag collection of farmers, store owners, and businessmen who weren't exactly sure what they had gotten themselves into; about a young nation's military that stormed the shores of Tripoli during the Barbary Wars to protect America's trade routes; about the second revolution during the War of 1812 when once again invaders came to America's shores; about those brave soldiers that fought to support Americans during the westward expansion; about those that fought in the Mexican-American War and in some cases made their last stand at a dusty fort overrun by the enemy; about Americans who fought fellow Americans in a bloody civil war that defined America's resolve to truly reveal the meaning of the phrase: All Men Are Created Equal; about the rough riders that stormed San Juan Hill; about the brave warriors in a war that America did not have to enter in Europe, a war so bloody it was hoped it would be the war to end all wars; about the greatest generation as they gave their lives in yet another defense of freedom in Europe, and this time also in the Pacific; about the Americans that served to stop the spread of communism in Korea and Vietnam, about those Americans that gave their lives during the Cold War that turned out to be a war that was often not so cold after all; about those Americans that served in the Persian Gulf at a time before we fully understood what we were up against when it came to Islam; about those Americans that extended, or entered service, after September 11, 2001 for the purpose of defending this nation against an enemy we still understood very little regarding; about the gunfire in the Muslim village, and the explosions on the lonely roadway, as our brave troops fought in Iraq fighting for the freedom of people they didn't even know; about those that gave their lives in other locations around the Middle East as we worked to make sense of a deceptive enemy; about those that have died in Afghanistan doing what they can to wrap up a promise to address the terror that held Americans hostage in 1979 and toppled towers in 2001, and about the four Americans killed in Benghazi, Libya when Islamists violently attacked them on the 2012 anniversary of 9/11.
Memorial Day is about our fallen. It is a day for prayers and reflection. It is about thanking those we can no longer thank in person. It is about visiting the cemeteries where they lie, dropping off flowers and American Flags at their graves. Kneeling in prayer, and dropping tears on their name plates as we remember their sacrifice.
Memorial Day is about the defense of an idea called freedom, and remembering those that gave their lives to protect that idea.
Memorial Day is a day of remembrance, and appreciation for the sacrifices of the fallen.
-- Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary
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