Another Memorial Day weekend - time to go camping, have picnics, enjoy the three day weekend. For so many of us, that's become the focus of the holiday. But it started out with a very different purpose. Originally called Decoration Day, this day was set aside to remember those who died in the Civil War. After World War I the holiday was changed to honor all who have fallen in war.
At this holiday, I often think of my mother-in-law, who signed on as a military wife. She and Dad met during World War II. He managed to get a day off to get married but that was about it. Their wedding night was spent on the beach, and it wasn't a romantic interlude like in the classic movie FROM HERE TO ETERNITY. At one point she felt a pulling on her hair, but it wasn't Dad running his fingers through it. It was wharf rat taking a nibble. Yikes! Dad was career army, and that meant Mom was in charge on the home front, supervising moves and paying rent and keeping four kids busy and out of mischief. I see so many military wives these days doing the same thing, holding down the fort while their husband is at sea or stationed far from home. Military wives, I don't know how you do it, but you have my admiration!
I suspect most of us have a relative who served in the military. I hope we'll all take some time this weekend to say thank you to someone who's served, to remember our fallen. We may not agree with the rightness of a war, but we can all appreciate the sacrifice so many have made.
At this holiday, I often think of my mother-in-law, who signed on as a military wife. She and Dad met during World War II. He managed to get a day off to get married but that was about it. Their wedding night was spent on the beach, and it wasn't a romantic interlude like in the classic movie FROM HERE TO ETERNITY. At one point she felt a pulling on her hair, but it wasn't Dad running his fingers through it. It was wharf rat taking a nibble. Yikes! Dad was career army, and that meant Mom was in charge on the home front, supervising moves and paying rent and keeping four kids busy and out of mischief. I see so many military wives these days doing the same thing, holding down the fort while their husband is at sea or stationed far from home. Military wives, I don't know how you do it, but you have my admiration!
I suspect most of us have a relative who served in the military. I hope we'll all take some time this weekend to say thank you to someone who's served, to remember our fallen. We may not agree with the rightness of a war, but we can all appreciate the sacrifice so many have made.
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