Memorial Day...

Coming up this weekend is Memorial Day. Commonly referred to as the unofficial start of summer, Memorial Day is often a day where people can enjoy a break from work, spend time outside cooking out and relaxing with friends and family. I feel like the true meaning of the holiday is slipping away, and this rings true for me especially as I see our family traditions shifting more and more each year.

As a child, I distinctly recall the succession of events our family engaged in every Memorial Day. It all started by purposely donning an outfit consisting of red, white and blue. Then we met up with my cousins, aunts, uncles and grandparents for the annual Pancake Breakfast at the school. We kids would usually gobble up our breakfast and then head outside to the playground while the adults gabbed before leaving to head to one of the local cemeteries to join the children's choir in singing a handful of Patriotic songs. Thanks to that experience, I actually remember most of the words to moving pieces like "My Country 'Tis of Thee," "This Land is Your Land," "America, America," and of course the National Anthem. A troop of soldiers from the local parade would always be present and after firing the guns, we kids would scramble to collect the empty bullet shells. We'd then head to the main street where the parades took place which as a kid were always an impressive production - bands, percussion, fire trucks, police cruisers, the whole gamut. We'd follow the parade to another cemetery where a speech would be made, more patriotic music was played and then we'd march on down to the town common for more speeches (as a kid it did get a little boring), and the reciting of the names of local soldiers either killed in action or missing in action.

From there, the fun would begin. We'd head to my great-grandmother's house for coffee. And by coffee, that mean iced coffee full of delicious cream and sugar and a fabulous array of donuts, brownies and coffee cake. We kids would run off and play, hanging from tree limbs, scouring the sides of the railroad tracks for treasures and doing whatever else kids do. Then, the day was normally filled with either a trip to the zoo and a picnic in the park or to the beach or just to my grandparents' house for a day of playing, relaxing and visiting.

But the important thing was the parades and remembering the veterans, the soldiers and even our own loved ones who have passed on. In recent years, I've noticed the parades getting smaller and the crowds getting thinner. Memorial Day is a hard day for me now that the day usually includes visiting my own father's grave - something I simultaneously both wish I did more often and yet hesitate to do. But even though something may be difficult, it's still worth doing.

As silly as it sounds, there was a very poignant scene in the recently released movie Battleship that I went to see last weekend with friends. When all odds were against the main characters and their resources seemed entirely depleted and all hope was lost, WWII veterans stepped up and performed like they hadn't been out of the service for a second. The thing we should remember - not just for one day but every day - is that these men and women made such a sacrifice, displayed such courage, wore such bravery, bore such humility all for the sake of our country, our freedoms, our livelihood. If asked, many of us wouldn't be strong enough to do the same, and the fact that someone else was deserves the utmost respect.

I'm not writing this to tell people how to spend their holiday. I know from personal experience that traditions have a tendency of changing with the generations. But if you see a soldier or a veteran on Monday, tip your hat. Shake their hand. Give them a pat on the back. Show them that their service was not in vain. Show them the respect and the honor that they deserve, because without our servicemen and women our country would not be what it is today.