As Memorial Day weekend approaches, we stand at the threshold of summer 2010. The future remains unknowable—for ourselves, our nation, and humanity at large. Yet in contemporary America, we have come to observe Memorial Day, a holiday dedicated to honoring those who died in combat, primarily as the unofficial start of summer. This transformation reflects how much we, as a nation, take for granted. The gradual shift is striking: a solemn observance meant to commemorate battlefield sacrifice has become synonymous with leisure and recreation. Memories have faded over time. Wars that once dominated our consciousness have receded into historical footnotes. Most of us living today give little thought to the ultimate price paid by those who served and died for our country. Even now, brave soldiers continue to fall on distant battlefields in Iraq and Afghanistan. Vietnam claimed more than 50,000 lives. Korea cost thousands. Hundreds of thousands perished in World War II and World War I. Tracing history back further to the Civil War, we see that courage transcends era and location. Abraham Lincoln’s celebrated remarks at the Gettysburg Battlefield dedication in November, 1863 capture the spirit we ought to embrace as summer 2010 begins. “It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be dedicated to the great task remaining before us – that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion – that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain – that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom – and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.” How did we transition from such nobility and reverence to a Monday holiday where beaches replace battlefields and grills and cars substitute for weapons? Monday offers us the opportunity to honor the fallen. In truth, every day should be a time to recognize the supreme sacrifice of those who died serving this nation. We must never forget their contribution. Memorial Day exists for one purpose: to be the day when Americans who cherish this country express gratitude and remember those lost in battle.
Memorial Day Weekend
