IN MEMORY OF OUR FALLEN HEROES
Take time for some reflection this weekend...
We all enjoy the long weekend at the beach, the mountains or the backyard barbeque. And rightfully so. But it's not about that nor shopping at the malls.
From the web site "Memorial Day Origin (http://www.memorialdayorigin.info/):
"Memorial days did not start in Petersburg, Virginia; Waterloo, New York; or any other city in the United States. Memorial days upon which the graves of the communities' heroes were decorated with flowers and garlands are ancient customs originating in Greece 2,500 years ago.
Memorial days were set aside during the American Civil War in both the United States and the Confederate States of America.
Following the Civil War, also known as the War Between the States, various communities started having memorial services for the war dead. The city of Waterloo, New York was officially recognized as the place where the first memorial services were held after the Civil War.
Petersburg, Virginia, has a clear, unbroken, logical chain of events making it the inspiration for and origin of the NATIONAL Memorial Day."
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Like so many other National holidays, we tend to lose sight of the true meaning: To memorialize our war dead. Whether you agree with the current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan or not, please remember that those who died did so in the service of our country, for us and for future generations.
And since the draft ended in the mid-1970s, everyone who has served since then did so willingly and unselfishly. "All gave some, some gave all".
I think back to my dad who entered the Navy in 1936 at age 16 with a forged birth certificate. He was at sea during the entire duration of WWII, on a destroyer and engaged in some fierce battles. He was also on ship off the coast of Korea during that war. Tom Brokaw called these men and women "The Greatest Generation". They were, and are rapidly leaving us each day.
I think back to when I was stationed at Tan Son Nhut Air Base in Saigon from 1968-1969. Each day in the early morning flat-bed tractor trailers lined up at the Mortuary next to the Dispensary where I worked. Every truck had a line of silver-colored coffins on it. There were a lot of trucks, as regulations prohibit stacking the coffins. The trucks were going to the flight line for the remains of these fallen comrades to go home. It was a sad sight. And it repeated every day while I was there.
Please take a few moments and silently reflect and thank those that gave their lives defending us and our freedoms we enjoy.
We all enjoy the long weekend at the beach, the mountains or the backyard barbeque. And rightfully so. But it's not about that nor shopping at the malls.
From the web site "Memorial Day Origin (http://www.memorialdayorigin.info/):
"Memorial days did not start in Petersburg, Virginia; Waterloo, New York; or any other city in the United States. Memorial days upon which the graves of the communities' heroes were decorated with flowers and garlands are ancient customs originating in Greece 2,500 years ago.
Memorial days were set aside during the American Civil War in both the United States and the Confederate States of America.
Following the Civil War, also known as the War Between the States, various communities started having memorial services for the war dead. The city of Waterloo, New York was officially recognized as the place where the first memorial services were held after the Civil War.
Petersburg, Virginia, has a clear, unbroken, logical chain of events making it the inspiration for and origin of the NATIONAL Memorial Day."
************************************************
Like so many other National holidays, we tend to lose sight of the true meaning: To memorialize our war dead. Whether you agree with the current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan or not, please remember that those who died did so in the service of our country, for us and for future generations.
And since the draft ended in the mid-1970s, everyone who has served since then did so willingly and unselfishly. "All gave some, some gave all".
I think back to my dad who entered the Navy in 1936 at age 16 with a forged birth certificate. He was at sea during the entire duration of WWII, on a destroyer and engaged in some fierce battles. He was also on ship off the coast of Korea during that war. Tom Brokaw called these men and women "The Greatest Generation". They were, and are rapidly leaving us each day.
I think back to when I was stationed at Tan Son Nhut Air Base in Saigon from 1968-1969. Each day in the early morning flat-bed tractor trailers lined up at the Mortuary next to the Dispensary where I worked. Every truck had a line of silver-colored coffins on it. There were a lot of trucks, as regulations prohibit stacking the coffins. The trucks were going to the flight line for the remains of these fallen comrades to go home. It was a sad sight. And it repeated every day while I was there.
Please take a few moments and silently reflect and thank those that gave their lives defending us and our freedoms we enjoy.
posted by Bob at
5/27/2006 08:07:00 AM
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