Decoration Day

Memory is a tricky thing. There are some things, however, that we should never forget. One of these is the sacrifices that others have made on our behalf.

It was a spring morning in 1866, just after the Civil War that had devastated the South. A group of Southerners did something quite extraordinary. They marched down the streets of what was left of their town to a cemetery. There they decorated the graves of the soldiers. ALL the soldiers – Union as well as Confederate. The mothers and daughters and widows had buried their dead. Now they were burying their hatred. The time for healing had come. It was the first Memorial Day.

Have you ever wondered why Memorial Day is marked in May? Its date doesn't recall some historic battle. Or the start of some war. Or the signing of an armistice. Why, then, May? For a very practical reason. Because it is a time when flowers bloom. Flowers with which to decorate graves.

There are those who remember when Memorial Day was called Decoration Day and when the cemeteries were filled with people kneeling to plant a flower or place a garland or unfurl a flag or to say a prayer. Some still do. But most people can no longer be bothered. It would take time away from the beach, the backyard, or the ball park.

Pause, take a moment, offer a prayer, remember, and never forget.