Thursday, May 25, 2006

A Reason for the Season

It's not that I think sitting at home and listening to radio stations play every Eighties tune from A-Z is a colossal waste of time. To each his own. I just believe that American soldiers who died, and for whom Memorial Day is dedicated, deserve appreciation for their ultimate sacrifice.

This is one of several times throughout the year when I sound like a broken record. Call it my own personal "Better Than Sleeping In Late" rally for the masses to acknowledge reasons these holidays exist in the first place. If anything, days off can be used as an excuse to give back to your community and make the world a better place. Later, drink your beer and grill dead animals with a clean conscience.

Since my children's first Memorial Day, we've attended ceremonies at Bay Pines National Cemetary in St. Petersburg. After 9/11, attendance went up and the participation is heartening. Community leaders and veterans make stirring speeches and military bands play music that will leave you in tears. Plenty of shade exists for children to run and play and I recommend taking time afterward to walk among the graves and whisper "thank you" to the ghosts among us, no doubt happy to see not everyone has forgotten them.

Are you proud to be an American? Prove it.

See you there.

3 Comments:

At 5/25/2006, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Memorial Day’s on of my favorite ‘USA’ holidays ... reason #1: I have family from every American war (including the Revolutionary War) ... reason #2: celebrating my b-day with deceased war veterans… nice! -how Gothic is that??
;-)

 
At 5/25/2006, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Beautiful sentiments and right on!! If it wasn't for our veterans, we would not enjoy all the freedoms that we have today. God bless them and those who are active military this holiday.

 
At 5/26/2006, Blogger Lofty said...

Kate-What a concept. A true homage to the holiday instead of an excuse to go shopping.

We're away for the holiday and will be celebrating today at our Minnesota hometown cemetery where the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe Veteran's Honor Guard will conduct a traditional ceremony. It always moves me to tears, even though I understand only half a dozen Ojibwe words. It will be particularly poignant this year as the husband is finally home for a Memorial day after spending the last three in the midlle east, and there has been so much tripe thrown around about patriotism requiring the use of English.

BTW-though not vegetarians the big treat foods of the day will be fry bread and mahnomen (wild rice, lake grown and hand harvested not the traditional economy killing and vastly inferior paddy grown rot you get in the grocery store).

 

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