A Day to Remember

"All that is necessary for evil to triumph is that good men do nothing." Edmund Burke

The kids will eat burgers and hot dogs. The adults will have steaks and salad. Ice cream will be our dessert, and strawberries, blueberries, and vanilla yogurt will make a celebratory appearance as a side dish. Seems a little funny that we remember the fallen by eating outside, throwing Frisbees, and drinking lemonade in the shade.

Yet this is one way we Americans have come to honor our heroes.

What began as Decoration Day after the Civil War in 1866, has evolved into a National holiday, celebrated across this great land of ours with picnics and barbeques. It all started with activist concern: Henry Welles, a resident of Waterloo, New York, felt that the soldiers who had died in the Civil War should be remembered and honored. His fellow citizens agreed, and everyone banded together and paid their respects by placing crosses and floral bouquets on each patriot's grave. The town flag was raised at half mast. Local veterans held a processional through town.

Waterloo honored the fallen the next spring as well, and two years later, General John Logan officially proclaimed May 5 Decoration Day. It was officially observed on May 30, and the tradition began--after World War I when the South joined in honoring their patriots as well--in 1882 when the name was changed to Memorial Day. By 1971, it was declared a national holiday, and now our entire nation looks forward, every year on this last Monday in May, to a day off from work, a day off from school, travel soccer tournaments out-of-state, gardening and all-day honey-do projects, extra coupons at the mall, and last but certainly not least, the aroma of beef cooking on the grill.

We have taken a day set aside to honor our heroes and turned it into one big, happy, American playdate. And I am as guilty as the next one.

So as I reflect on what sense of history and due respect I want to impart to my own kids, it boils down to the little things. (And isn't that the case with most things in life?) It requires that we instill in them respect for the principles upon which this great country of ours was built. It requires that we inject into them a healthy shot of patriotism when many hate everything for which we stand...while yet others risk life and limb to cross into our borders.

It requires that we impart to them the names of some of the tall shoulders on which our freedom stands. It requires that we remember.

So just how do we do that--hamburgers and Frisbees aside?

o Have a healthy discussion--even if it's over hot dogs on your deck--about the hardships our country has had to endure to maintain our freedoms. Share with them stories of family and friends whose freedom has been jeopardized, or who never tasted its sweetness in the first place. My own in-laws sent their four kids on two separate planes to America without the knowledge that they'd ever see them again. They sacrificed everything in the name of freedom and democracy.

o Commit to read--sometime this year--a book on American history or on one of the wars in which our citizens fought. Even if it's not your "thing" and you'd rather curl up on the sofa with The Secret Life of Bees. Become painfully aware of the cost in human life of those freedoms which you so thoroughly enjoy.

o Watch a war movie together with the older children in your family to help them get a realistic picture of the horror of war. Gruesome scenes can be fast-forwarded for those children not old enough to handle it; for many, seeing is believing.

o Participate in a local parade--or attend as a cheering bystander. Show your enthusiastic support for those who have personally fought for your freedom. Flag-waving and applause for our country's heroes go a long way in fostering national pride.

o Take time out today to pray for our president, his closest advisors, and other world leaders. Maintaining strong leadership in wartime is an arduous task; offering up prayers for their endurance, emotional and physical strength, and wisdom to make the right decisions will go a long way towards binding us in our large circle of brotherly love.

o Pray for families who have loved ones serving our country in the war, as well as in strategic positions around the globe in efforts to preserve democracy. Pray for peace for spouses and children left behind, and for the brave service men and women who long to be back in their loved one's arms.

Above all, be thankful. Be thankful for each one of the freedoms--large and small--that you enjoy every single day because others were willing to sacrifice on your behalf. Never, ever take their actions, or these freedoms, for granted.

Enjoy this Memorial Day!