In the U.S., we honor our dead on the last Monday of May. Other countries have similar days of homage. The American observance, first known as Decoration Day, was established to honor soldiers who perished in our Civil War.
Meanwhile, south of the Mason-Dixon line, schoolgirls of the Petersburg (Virginia) area placed flowers on the graves of Confederate soldiers. From these simple floral tributes came the Southern idea of Decoration Day.
Each of these cities, and several others as well, claim to have observed the first Memorial Day in 1866. Congress designated Waterloo as the "birthplace of Memorial Day" in 1966, in time for the centennial of the event in that town. It doesn't matter today where the holiday was first celebrated, especially since there's little chance any of the various localities knew what was transpiring in another.
In 1971 President Nixon moved Memorial Day from the traditional May 30th to the fourth Monday in May thus giving federal employees a three-day weekend. In the South, many states still pay tribute to the Confederate dead on days other than May's fourth Monday.
Gradually, Memorial Day observances broadened to include tribute to all those who have died, not just our veterans. Family graves are decorated with wreaths and flowers; the graves of those who served in the Armed Forces traditionally include an American flag.
There may be parades and speeches, picnics and pool openings, but underlying the festivities it's important we keep in mind the original reason for the holiday and take a moment to give special thanks to the many men, women and even children, who perished on the roads to freedom.
We don't always agree with the causes but that doesn't lessen the loss of a human life. Our war casualties were often patriotic volunteers but there were also those who were drafted and dragged, drugged, and even kidnapped. And some of the casualties are not in graves but are among our walking wounded, broken in body and/or spirit. We can do no less than pay them the same tribute we pay those who gave their lives.
Take a moment this Memorial Day and consider those who we need to memorialize. May God bless them all.
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