From the first settlers and immigrants who had to fight and die to lay the bedrock for what would be our nation, to those over the last couple centuries who have died in service to this fledgling experiment, Memorial Day is their day. It is the day we set aside to somberly reflect on those who paid the ultimate price so that we could enjoy more freedom, more prosperity, more opportunities to give to others out of our own abundance, and more chances to look at people based only on character, not by accident of birth, than any other in history - present day included.
But we're not here by accident, luck, or blind coincidence. Yes, we might be heading toward becoming the latest in a long line of harlots of Babylon. But right now, and for our history, as flawed as it could be, we were always striving for the best, and doing so because of those willing to go out and give their lives so the rest of us could continue forward.
On this Memorial Day, reading this piece by Robert O'Neill, might be worth the time. He reminds us that Memorial Day is not just the next great shopping day that kicks off Summer. Rather, it is a time to stop the cookouts, the races, the games, the get togethers, and think of those who are no longer able to do such things. Not because they were victims of circumstance, but because they chose to go into harm's way.
At such times, turning to God and thanking Him for the abundant blessings we've been given, and those who died so that we might make the best use of them, is the appropriate thing to do. When I think of those who died, or those who served so that I might be free, I can't help but imagine they are better than me. Nonetheless, by God's grace, I might be able to keep the torch handed to me in such a way that future generations will know at least what I've known of the blessings that come from being an American.
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