I really have nothing profound or insightful to say about Memorial Day.  I come from a family whose members never went out of their way to serve in the military.  I had one great-uncle who was in the Navy, my grandmother's brother, who died during World War II when he drowned during a training accident.  My own father served in the Army Reserves during the early 60's, but he never had to leave the United States.  When I was young Memorial Day was just the holiday that marked the beginning of summer vacation, when our family took a short vacation at a park on Lake LBJ outside of Marble Falls every year.  When I graduated high school--the time when most young men who join the military do so--I was a very anti-establishment type of person with college ahead of me and joining the Service was not something I would even consider.  I guess I am still a very anti-establishment type of person, but my attitude toward those who serve has changed greatly since then.

Several years ago, I participated for a couple of years in Army MARS--the Military Affiliate Radio System--and I came to know personally many World War II veterans.  I guess it was during this time that I got to thinking more about what they had done, the sacrifices they had made, and those who never lived to come back home.  Back then there was a MARS station at Fort Sam Houston which I visited occasionally, and that meant driving past all those neat rows of markers at the Fort Sam cemetery.  It forced one to contemplate certain things.

Tomorrow I will honor those who should be remembered by doing nothing special.  I will play with my children and barbecue a brisket.  Those who died did so so that people like me could live a quiet normal life and--hopefully--never have to suffer what they suffered.  I will fly my flag with the proper Memorial Day protocol and try to explain to my young children why it flies at half-staff until noon.  And I will try to teach them why we should remember and honor people who we never knew.

There are some new Memorial Day posts up at Operation: Noble Duty.  Be sure and pay them a visit.