I have been doing a lot of thinking about Memorial day and what it means this year. I have always known it was a day to remember people who gave their lives for our country... for our freedom. People who gave up so many moments of their lives so that I can enjoy the moments in mine.
It seems like this day, like so many others, has become about commercialism. About what sells we can catch and where to get the best deals. Or just about a day off from school and work. We get so frustrated about what to cook, and who is coming over... So bogged down in the things that really do not matter. I saw on a friends Facebook page that she was able to go and visit her dad's grave for the first time in her life. He died before she was born. When I looked at the pictures I cried. I am so ashamed that I, as well as just the country, have lost sight of what a gift our freedom is. I have decided that next weekend when we have been paid, I will load the family up and we are taking a trip. We are going to go and see some places that have to do with the revolutionary war, the civil war, and I really really want to take them to see the Vietnam war wall. It is so important to help our children remember (or learn) how lucky we are to have the freedoms and peace that we have, and the cost of those luxuries.
Today, I am making it my promise to my kids, and myself, that we will not allow the sacrifices of all the men and women who have gone before us to go unnoticed. So tomorrow we will cook out, and we will enjoy the company of friends and family. BUT we will also say a prayer of thanks for the people who fought to make it possible for us to live this way.
It seems like this day, like so many others, has become about commercialism. About what sells we can catch and where to get the best deals. Or just about a day off from school and work. We get so frustrated about what to cook, and who is coming over... So bogged down in the things that really do not matter. I saw on a friends Facebook page that she was able to go and visit her dad's grave for the first time in her life. He died before she was born. When I looked at the pictures I cried. I am so ashamed that I, as well as just the country, have lost sight of what a gift our freedom is. I have decided that next weekend when we have been paid, I will load the family up and we are taking a trip. We are going to go and see some places that have to do with the revolutionary war, the civil war, and I really really want to take them to see the Vietnam war wall. It is so important to help our children remember (or learn) how lucky we are to have the freedoms and peace that we have, and the cost of those luxuries.
Today, I am making it my promise to my kids, and myself, that we will not allow the sacrifices of all the men and women who have gone before us to go unnoticed. So tomorrow we will cook out, and we will enjoy the company of friends and family. BUT we will also say a prayer of thanks for the people who fought to make it possible for us to live this way.
No comments:
Post a Comment