On Monday, we celebrate[d] Memorial Day, formerly known as Decoration Day.
To my mind, this is not a day of celebration, but a day of solemn remembrances of those who made the supreme sacrifice in the name of freedom.
It seems to me that Memorial Day has lost much of its meaning while we talk about department store shopping sprees, visits to the mall and outdoor picnics, all of course fitting and proper for any Saturday afternoon day of fun, but not for Memorial Day.
Memorial Day is a day to hang out our flag, and to hear speeches honoring our brave soldiers from all wars from Valley Forge to Gettysburg to D-Day and Corregidor, Korea, Vietnam and the Middle East.
True Americans have always answered the call of duty, and as they say, we fight for mom, the flag, and apple pie.
In other words, for freedom and a way of life we all cherish and love.
I think of the brave airmen who flew the war torn skies over Europe in their mighty bombers, risking everything to keep America free, many of them never returning, some under crosses in faraway lands.
If these and other brave men and women who fought could speak from their graves, they might say to us today: “Enjoy the day, but please remember us; after all, it truly is our day.”
George V. Hill, Sr.
Submitted by his son, George Vreeland Hill.
George V. Hill, Sr. died in 2007 just seven months after he wrote this.
