Memorial Day

Today is Memorial Day (observed) in the US.  I honor this day.

Memorial Day was first widely observed in the US in May 1868. The celebration commemorated the sacrifices of the Civil War and the proclamation was made by General John A Logan. Following the proclamation, participants decorated graves of more than 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers.

President Ronald Reagan said in 1986, "Today is the day we put aside to remember fallen heroes and to pray that no heroes will ever have to die for us again. It's a day of thanks for the valor of others, a day to remember the splendor of America and those of her children who rest in this cemetery and others. It's a day to be with the family and remember."

President Barack Obama said in 2015 that "On Memorial Day, the United States pauses to honor the fallen heroes who died in service to our Nation. With heavy hearts and a sense of profound gratitude, we mourn these women and men—parents, children, loved ones, comrades-in-arms, friends, and all those known and unknown—who believed so deeply in what our country could be they were willing to give their lives to protect its promise.”

I usually post a small graphic to recognize the day.   I am of an age who had uncles who fought on the battlefields and aunts who spent time giving and collecting blood, working in the factories, and keeping the home fires lit...

But I think we sometimes forget why they did that beyond the usual "defense of country",  and I was reminded of that yesterday watching a history DVD.

The Statue Of Liberty (full name "Liberty Enlightening The World") was a gift from France.  It took a couple decades for the US to settle on a site for it and to construct a pedestal and to assemble the parts.  But I only mention that because of the poem.  Because the part of the poem by Emma Lazarus we know best is:

"Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

That's why my uncles, aunts, and forefathers fought.   And that is why I honor this day.  And not that my past generations succeeded in all, but they tried.  Sometimes honor is doing your best, knowing you are imperfect...

  ...................

BTW, do you know what is inscribed on the tablet?

"JULY IV MDCCLXXVI"  (July 4, 1776)

And the full sonnet written by  Emma Lazarus is:

"The New Colossus
Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
“Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!” cries she
With silent lips. “Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!".

France gave the U.S. the Statue of Liberty in 1886; Americans gave Paris a smaller version of the same statue in 1889.  The two face each other across the Atlantic...