Today is Memorial Day
A day when most Americans remember those who have lost their lives to war. A day when most Americans have a day off, go to a parade and bbq. This is just what we do on this day.
But for the Military community, Memorial day is a little different. We do usually have the day off, go to a parade and bbq. But we also remember those who have lost their lives. But for each of us, it gets a little more personal. Each of us knows a Gold Star family. I know of four of them personally. Four friends who became widows during our past deployments.
They are who I think about on this day.
- I think about how we all said goodbye to our husbands together, yet some did not return.
- I think about my husband telling a fellow soldier what it was like to be a Dad, only to have that soldier lose his life the very next day. His wife was pregnant with their first baby.
- I think about reading that email about the soldier who died and realizing I knew that last name. It belonged to a friend of mine.
- I think about hearing my husband talk about his buddy. How they had a lot in common. How he was a family guy too. And then receiving a phone call while I was in Vienna of all places, that he had also been killed in action.
- I think about the fence outside the elementary school in Germany with the photos of those who we had lost during that long 15 month deployment.
- I think about the little children that will never know their own fathers because they died before they were old enough to be able to remember them.
- I think about the older children that still feel the loss so greatly years later.
- I think about the Moms sending their children off to war only to get the knock on the door that they were not coming home.
- I think about the end of a Memorial service when they call for the soldier and he does not answer. I think about how heartbreaking that really is.
- I think about the table that sits empty at every Military Ball.
This is what I think about on Memorial Day. I can’t help it. As a Military spouse, I have experienced all of this. It is real. Not just something that happened 50 years ago.
So when you are enjoying your day off and having a bbq, please remember the Gold Star families who are missing someone. Remember what they have been through and what they have given up. Say a prayer and remember that freedom is just not free. It always comes with a cost.
Last Updated on June 27, 2016 by Writer
Karen
Hi Julie,
Thank you for your Memorial Day post. It really made me focus on what the day is truly about. Blessings to you and your family as you begin a new chapter as a National Guard family.