Memorial Day 2018
It’s raining today.
Not just cloudy with the occasional drizzle,
but full out rain
that turns the world gray
and sucks the life out of you.
It seems appropriate, somehow,
that barbecues, beach parties,
and other outdoor fun should be canceled–
or at least have a damper put on them.
The day isn’t meant to be joyful.
“Happy Memorial Day” is hardly appropriate
for a day that is meant to honor the dead.
While it’s all well and good
to thank those who’ve served,
today isn’t about that either.
Today is a day of reflection,
a day to remember those
who made the greatest sacrifice,
those who gave their lives for the greater good,
so that the freedoms we so often take for granted
still exist in the world.
Today is the day to honor the dead.
Honor is more than cemeteries
suddenly covered with flags and flowers.
Honor is about living life
for all the things they laid down their lives for.
Brotherhood, the common good, peace,
the freedom to believe in whatever god they choose
without being judged for it,
the freedom to speak the truth and not be stoned,
a world where all people,
regardless of any of the labels we use to separate us,
can truly be free.
It is raining today.
I can’t help but think that the rain
is really the tears of the fallen,
wondering if their sacrifice was in vain
as they look down and see what we’ve become.
It is raining today
and I weep with them.
Even if the sun is shining where you are, please take a few minutes to honor those who made the greatest sacrifice.
Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.
~Elise Skidmore ©2018
