Memorial Day a time for reflection
To the Editor;
Yet another Memorial Day has slipped into history, and the memories of the fallen have, once again, been rekindled. Pangs of pain sear the hearts of mothers whose very flesh and blood stain the battlefields of so many faraway places. Fathers silently grieve as they remember the hopes and dreams they once cherished for a child they’ll never again embrace.
Memorial Day is truly a day for reflection. It’s more than a marching band, fluttering flags and patriotic music. It’s a time when our “past” becomes our “present.” The day possesses a somber and nostalgic quality that possibly is lost on the youth. But the day becomes more vivid and clearly defined as history and the present blend into a mental patchwork of thoughts and reality about who we are and who they were.
The most recent Memorial Day seems to have taken on a special meaning, not just because of the past, our legacy, but also because of the present and what is happening to our country. We each have so many questions, yet, the answers allude us.
Take a moment and ask yourself why the thousands upon thousands of loved ones, members of our national family, have sacrificed their “all” so that we can remain free to ponder and build a future. Are we living by our Constitution? Do we understand our past and do we comprehend its relevancy to the present? Do we, as a nation, community or even as individuals honor the “rule of law?” Do we even love one another as we love ourselves and do we regularly reconsider our personal values? Would you knowingly give your life so that others might live? Have you ever wondered if those whose lives are memorialized merely by a piece of stone or wood died for love of country — for each of us?
Those rows of headstones — hallowed ground in Normandy, Italy, North Africa, the Netherlands, islands in the Pacific, and yes, Arlington in Virginia, are quiet now save for the lingering note of “Taps” from a solitary bugle. But the crosses, the Stars of David, and the unmarked graves of the “unknown” remain to serve as reminders for each of us to be ever vigilant lest we lose our memories, our history and our country.
Every day should be a kind of personal memorial day! A day when we realize how our past has become a cornerstone for the present and a guidepost for the future of our freedom.
Donald Benjamin
Dover-Foxcroft