And for many, it’s a three-day weekend for a quick trip to the beach or mountains. Maybe it’s a time of cook-outs and family gatherings, of watching racing, or baseball, maybe golf, or possibly it’s just a chance to take a little break from work and enjoy an extra day off.
What Memorial Day is supposed to be, what it was intended when created by Congress in 1967 — although it had been celebrated in some form or another since shortly after the Civil War — is a time to remember those who have given their life in military service to the nation.
It would be too easy, and a cliché, to say every soldier who has died in service did so to preserve our way of life here in the United States, that we would not enjoy the level of relative freedom we have here without that sacrifice.
That could certainly be said for those who died in the Revolutionary War, as well as the War of 1812, and the Civil War. Had those soldiers not been willing to give their all, the United States might very well not exist today.
World War I probably brought no direct, immediate threat to America, but the world politics would certainly have been altered significantly without the United States’ involvement. And there is little doubt that America was in peril during the World War II days.
Since then, though, wars and politics have become more complicated. The United States took an active role in the Korean War as well as the Vietnam War. The country’s foes in both of those wars did not necessarily pose an imminent risk to the United States, however there is little doubt America’s involvement, and the terrible cost in human lives, in those two conflicts did keep world communist powers focused there, as opposed to expansion in the Western Hemisphere, closer to the United States.
Then came the Gulf Wars. First President H.W. Bush involved the United States in a successful effort to quell Saddam Hussein’s Middle Eastern empire hopes, and the second war was, in many ways, a continuation of the first to finish off Saddam and attempt to institute a U.S.-friendly government there.
Sandwiched in between those wars was the start-up of hostilities in Afghanistan, were U.S. forces brought down the Taliban after that rogue government was found to be a significant supporter of al-Qaida, which as you all know led the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States.
These latest two wars, of course, are still ongoing. And over the decades there have been many other conflicts which have involved U.S. troops, and even instances where soldiers were killed while not engaged in active hostilities, such as the soldiers killed when their barracks were bombed in Beirut in 1983.
Here’s the thing though. It doesn’t necessarily matter that a U.S. soldier gave his or her life during active combat against a foe bent on destroying America, died while fighting in a war that had little direct effect on life in the United States, or was killed in a training exercise.
What is important to remember is this: These folks were there to serve their nation — you and I and our families and friends — when that nation came calling. They took on a dangerous job and sacrificed their lives for us.
I think Memorial Day is a wonderful time to spend with family, to enjoy the outdoors and the warming weather. That’s what the day has grown into, and I find no real fault with that.
However, I encourage every one of you to include some time on Monday to remember those who have given their lives in service to the United States. There is a Memorial Day service scheduled for Westfield today, and another set for Mount Airy on Monday, among others.
Take your family to one of these services, let them experience a little of the solemn roots of the day. And then go to your cookouts and family gatherings, thankful for those who have served to give us all the freedom to do just that.
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