Memorial Day, a Time of Remembrance
Dear faithful reader: Although I’m late in submitting this Memorial Day tribute, I haven’t forgotten the many men and women of this great nation who sacrificed their all for our many freedoms. It’s never too late to say thanks for your service and God Bless to those who made the ultimate sacrifice! – Dick Perue
An editorial in the May 29, 1913 “Saratoga Sun” reads:
The nation tomorrow bows its head for one brief day to honor the men who saved the union. As years roll on and few of the heroes of other days are left in the land of the living, we take up with more real meaning every year the memory of those who fought that the United States might someday be the greatest united nation on the face of the earth.
The dream is true, and many lived to see it come to pass, but where one lived, thousands gave their lives. Honor to the few who still remain, and honor to those who rest at peace with the world. To those who sleep, we cast a tear and leave a little flower. To those who live we offer our hand, we cannot pay you in coin, in gratitude or expression. What the nation owes you can never be paid. Only in the great life to come will you get blessing due you.
Memorial Day brings to us the thought of a life to come, where all things are equalized, where the sorrows and sufferings of earthly things do not exist, where we meet again the dear ones who have gone before. It is not necessary that only the dear, old soldiers be remembered. Remember the others, too, that have gone on. If the silent marble lips of the veterans could speak, they would ask no greater plaudits than that we remember all, of both high and low, civilian or soldier, on this day of memory. They would not ask that they alone be remembered. Far from it. They claimed no glory for themselves. Great noble hearted men, who died that the nation might live.
Set aside your business tomorrow, and in your heart, remember the men who are worth your memory. Show some appreciation for the men who were, and show your heart to the men who still live. It is the duty of every American citizen, to let the red blood circulate through his body and let his breast fill with pride for the heroes of by gone days.
A May 30, 1920 advertisement in the “Sheridan Post” asks:
If He Were Alive Today…
Would you pin a flower on his coat – the hallowed coat of your country’s defender?
Would you smile into his love-lit eyes and wish him happiness?
Then, since God, in His infinite wisdom, has called many of our Beloved Heroes to the Great Beyond, place flowers on their graves in kindly remembrance and sincere appreciation of the sacrifices they made. It is the least you can do for those who fought and died that you might be safe and happy.
To the Sacred Memory of all American Heroes, both living and dead, this space is dedicated . . .
