The older I get, the more seriously I take Memorial Day. Yes, I've been getting very excited about my barbecue tomorrow, but I have more than enough reasons to take time to away from partying this weekend to be very somber and appreciative. I am acutely aware of the sacrifices made by my family, friends, and people I will never know, who served their country in the best way they knew how. So many members of my family have served some amount of time in the military, that I have taken to referring to it as the "family business." It has provided income and education to many men and women I know and love, and I respect and thank them for taking the associated risks for all our sakes. Most of my loved ones have completed their time in the service with no major injuries, and as far as I know, none have died in combat, going back at least two generations.
My man traditionally planted red, white, and blue (purple) petunias around the Fourth of July, as part of our holiday decorations. Since he has been gone the last two growing seasons, I have switched up his habit, and made my red, white, and blue flower plantings for Memorial Day instead. Last year I used bright red celosia, white Shasta daisies, and blue delphinium (and of the three, only the daisies came back). This year, I went for a frothier concoction of carmine red calibrachoa, tall white angelonia, and a low, spreading, blue dwarf morning glory. As I planted each flower, all around the barrel, I made a point of thinking of those people dear to me, who took the risks for me. I grabbed a handful of potting soil to pack between the angelonia and morning glories, and thought, this is for my father, who was on active duty when I was a young child, and who stayed in the guard long enough to retire from the military. Another handful, and I thought of my stepfather, who was in ROTC with my dad, and who used his GI bill to study art, bringing color and beauty into my life. Next pot of morning glories, and I thought of my cousins, who were in ROTC at the college in my hometown when I was in high school, and of their ROTC classmate there who was my first boyfriend. I spun the barrel around again, and thought of the young man at CU I knew, who came out to me, knowing how that could have threatened his standing in the air force ROTC program if his sexual orientation had been revealed back in those days. Another plant, and I thought of another young man I knew at CU, who was destined for a career in the navy, who went with me to see an on-campus showing of the movie Hair. He was a little anxious at the scenes of Berger getting sent to die in Vietnam, but in a giant crowd scene at the very end, the frame froze and his eyes zeroed in on a couple people stretching a large American flag between them. It moved him, that in a film showing the serious costs of his chosen profession, it ended on a symbol of exactly why he was taking on the risks, to serve the country he loved. I've never forgotten his reaction, even though I was barely 18 at the time.
I want everyone to enjoy the long weekend, to kick off the summer with style. It is a time to be with our families and friends, and to celebrate. I hope you all join me in keeping a place in your heart to send out some love to all the men and women who sign up to serve, not knowing how great their sacrifices could be, but willing to take the chance nonetheless. They have already shown us how much they love us by doing what they do.
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