5/25/2009

Don't forget

Let us honor all those who have given their lives in service that we might live in the freedom we so often take for granted. Even if you didn't ask anyone to die on your behalf...many did. Everyone in this country, by virtue of their citizenship, has requested by default that military servicemen and women protect them.

So if you like living here, honor those who have died.


Today my family visits the cemetery where many of our relatives and loved ones are buried, including some who served in WWII. There are flags everywhere. Only one of my grandpas served, but we like to place a flag on the other grandpa's grave because he served on the Home Front in the factory. As my aunt said this afternoon, "It's good for the soul."

Originally a Roman civic virtue, piety refers to the honoring of ancestors. Visiting the graves of my deceased relatives has always been a meaningful part of my upbringing, and it's indeed a very pious experience: to trim the grass around the marker, plant a few marigolds, and pray for the soul whose body is buried there.

Though none of my relatives perished in battle, it's gratifying to know that we are there, surrounded by the testimony that- while war itself is evil- to die for one's country is still a noble act. Let us pray for peace~

No comments:

Blog Archive