The brave die never, though they sleep in dust:
Their courage nerves a thousand living men.
~Minot J. Savage
Memorial Day is not about pool parties, back yard bbq’s, or trips to the beach. It isn’t a three day weekend because teachers need a break or the average Joe needs a break from the rat race. Memorial Day IS about a proclamation made in 1868 by General John Logan, national commander for the Grand Army of the Republic, to have flowers placed on the graves of Union and Confederate Soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. After World War I, Memorial Day changed from honoring our Civil War soldiers, to all those Americans who had lost their lives fighting for our country.
Memorial Day is not about war. It is about people. People who bravely laid down their lives so we can be free. It is about honoring them and their sacrifices…..from those that died on that vast field in Gettysburg to the street battles in Iraq and the deserts on Afghanistan. Lets not forget our Military War Dogs! From the first war dog Stubby, A Pit Bull hero from WWI, to Cairo the Belgian Malinos Navy Seal who helped end Osama Bin Laden and the 4000 MWD’s that saved lives in Vietnam…these dogs deserve a moment of reflection!
3pm is the National Moment of Remembrance, put down your beer, get out of the pool and take a moment to think of the men, women and K9’s that have made the biggest sacrifice for our country.
And while you are at it, if you have a Veteran with you, give them a hug and thank them and their families for continuing the fight for American freedom. I honor these veterans and currently serving warriors everyday, and hope you do as well. Please keep in mind that the words Happy and Memorial Day, do not go together….the biggest oxymoron ever.
Thank you!
Perform, then, this one act of remembrance before this Day passes – Rememberthere is an army of defense and advance that never dies and never surrenders, but is increasingly recruited from the eternal sources of the American spirit and from the generations of American youth. ~W.J. Cameron
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