Honoring the Fallen

Well, Memorial Day has come and gone....

I had planned on doing a nice memorial post to honor the fallen, but quite frankly, I just didn't have it in me to even go online all weekend. Most people nowadays seem to forget what Memorial Day is supposed to represent, I've been guilty of it too. When people wish you a "Happy Memorial Day" obviously, they don't get it.

Memorial Day is a day of remembrance, a day to honor the fallen. Remember them and the sacrifices they've made. Remember what it is they died for. Too many Americans have forgotten...

It seems the older I get the more the heavy a weight it is on my soul.

So since this is a couple days late and a couple of dollars short, I'll refer you to an excellent memorial day post over at Gazing at the Flag.

Just to educate those that don't know:

A Brief History of Memorial Day

Originally called Decoration Day, Memorial Day is a day of remembrance for those who have died in service to our country. It was first widely observed on May 30, 1868, to commemorate the sacrifices of Civil War soldiers, by proclamation of General John A. Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic, an organization of former sailors and soldiers.
During the first national celebration, General James Garfield made a speech at Arlington National Cemetery, after which 5,000 participants helped to decorate the graves of the more than 20,000 Union and Confederate soldiers who were buried there. This event was inspired by local observances of the day that had taken place in several towns throughout America in the three years since the Civil War. By the late 1800s, many more cities and communities had begun to observe Memorial Day, and after World War I, it became a occasion for honoring those who had died in all America's wars.
Memorial Day is celebrated at Arlington National Cemetery each year with a ceremony in which a small American flag is placed on each grave. Traditionally, the President or Vice President lays a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. About 5,000 people attend the ceremony annually.
In 1971, Congress declared Memorial Day a national holiday to be celebrated on the last Monday of May. Several southern states, however, have an additional, separate day for honoring the Confederate war dead: January 19 in Texas; April 26 in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi; May 10 in South Carolina; and June 3 in Louisiana and Tennessee.