What We Must Remember On Memorial Day.

Today is Memorial Day. For many it's the end of a three day weekend, it's an extra day off from work, it’s a chance to go to the lake (or not considering all the rain), it’s a time to spend with friends and family, to drink and party. But the day was never meant to just be an extra day off from work or a day to symbolize the start of Summer vacation. It's a day to remember the ultimate sacrifice given by American Soldiers for the freedoms we have today. Ironically, that same freedom they fought so hard for, allows each of us to enjoy the day off from work, partying and drinking if we so choose, sometimes, shamefully forgetting the sacrifices made.

I've said it before, but I feel so incredibly blessed to come from a family with a rich military history. Because of this, I feel like I have a special place in my heart for veterans and their families. But if I'm honest, all too often, I take for granted the Freedoms that I have because of those Veterans and the soldiers killed during war. I always always always want Soldiers and Veterans to know how grateful I am for their service. I also want them to know that I'm thankful for the sacrifices of their friends and brothers who never made it back home. That's what this day is for. It's a day to remember those that gave the ultimate sacrifice for our country, those that never made it home to their families. And that's why I wanted to write this post, to remember those sacrifices.

I love history but I didn’t know the full history of Memorial Day when I had the thought to write this post. So I did some research and here are 12 facts you may not know about the holiday. Consider this your lesson for the day (http://www.va.gov/opa/speceven/memday/history.asp)

1. Three years after the civil war ended on May 5, 1868 Decoration Day was established by the Grand Army of the Republic.
2. Decoration day was established as a time to decorate the graves of Soldiers killed in the war.
3. The first large observance of Decoration Day was held on May 30th at Arlington National Cemetery.
4. The crowd in attendance that day was approximately the same as today:  ~ 5,000 people.
5. Small American flags were placed on the graves and the tradition continues across the country today.
6. On May 5 1866 citizens honored local veterans who had fought and were killed in the Civil War.
7. Today cities in the north and south continue to claim their towns as the birthplace of Memorial Day in 1866.
8. In 1966 President Johnson and Congress declared Waterloo, N.Y. as the birthplace of memorial day.
9. Memorial day was declared a national holiday in 1971
10. It was not until after World War I that the day became known as a day to honor those who died in all American wars.
11. In December of 2000, Congress also passed "The National Moment of Remembrance Act."
12. This law was passed to encourage Americans to pause wherever they are at 3pm on Memorial Day to observe a minute of silence to remember and honor those who died in service to our nation.

According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, 651,031 American soldiers were killed in America's wars from 1775-1991 in battle. Another 308,800 Soldiers died in theater during the same time frame. According to the department of defense, 6,835 American soldiers have been killed in the Global War on Terror from 2001- present.

(http://www.va.gov/opa/publications/factsheets/fs_americas_wars.pdf, http://www.defense.gov/news/casualty.pdf)

That’s 966,666 American Soldiers killed for our freedom. Those men and women never made it home to their families and friends. Let that sobering fact sink in for a minute.

There isn't much more I can say. 966,666 Americans have given their lives for your freedom and my freedom. Their families have sacrificed. Their friends have sacrificed. Their brothers have sacrificed. Unfortunately, that number will climb. There will be more families, more friends, more brothers who have to say goodbye to their loved ones as they too make the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom. And today we owe it to them to remember what this day is all about. 

Today, we must remember the sacrifices made by those 966,666 Americans.

Nothing we do, will bring back those lost. But you and I have the opportunity to honor them in a small way today, by seeing this day for what it is. May we always remember the freedoms we have because of them. May we always fight to protect those freedoms and may we take time today, if even just for a moment to set aside our partying and celebrating to remember those sacrifices.

I will leave you with this quote I read on the Veterans affair's website. Even if I tried, I couldn't say it better than this. I can't help but wonder what our country would be like, if we actually took to heart the weight of these words. 

As Maj. Gen. John A. Logan declared May 30th Decoration Day in 1868, he stated- "We should guard their graves with sacred vigilance. ... Let pleasant paths invite the coming and going of reverent visitors and fond mourners. Let no neglect, no ravages of time, testify to the present or to the coming generations that we have forgotten as a people the cost of a free and undivided republic.”