This Memorial Day Weekend 2017

Here’s wishing everyone a safe Memorial Day weekend. 

When I was a child, my parents called it “Decoration Day.”  My brother served in the Army and every year on Decoration Day, the family headed out to the cemetery to visit his grave.  As we got closer to the cemetery, there were shops that sold flags and flowers.  My mom always bought a wreath to lay on my brother’s grave that would not get blown away by the wind, and next to it, we stuck the stick into the ground that held the American flag.

When my dad made his transition, he was buried in the same cemetery as my brother.  We kept to the same tradition of a wreath and American flag.  As the years went on, Memorial Day became a day to visit the final resting places of other family members who transitioned but had not served in the Armed Forces. 

This year, we are not going to cemeteries.  Rain is expected tomorrow, so we are holding a “memory day” to include sharing photos and revisiting the lives of those who have transitioned.   We use somewhat of a lottery system to rotate the two folded American flags to pass-on to another family member.  The names will go into a punch bowl and two names will be pulled.

Another word about my brother; before he died, he did a recording that he dedicated to me.  My oldest sister had the vinyl that through the years was misplaced, but I will always remember the song.  Here is the version by the Ink Spots