Happy Memorial Day, when I was a young man, I did not understand this holiday. It is a holiday of remembrance and while I am a proud Army veteran and my brother and father are Air Force veterans we were fortunate and lost neither life nor limb in a foreign war or engagement. Nonetheless both my brother and I served during the closing years of the Viet Nam war, my brother served in Thailand and I served with guys who had "cycled-back from Vietnam,"with the armored division I was assigned to that ended up in Augsburg, West Germany.
As I have grown older and days and time seem finite, I understand loss and genuine grieving. Once upon a time, Memorial Day was about picnics, and an extra day off of work. The launch of the Summer vacation--to me, today, I am very sad and pensive. I think of my relatives and friends who are passed, and the men and women in uniform.
I am grateful for this life with all of its uncertainties and the freedom to talk about how the world should be and a vision of justice and integrity and peace, if only in my heart.
God bless you and your family this Memorial Day weekend. Regular posting will resume on Tuesday.
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