Letter to the Editor: Veteran Hopes Others Celebrate Memorial Day with Spirit, Vigor

To whom it may concern,

For many across the great state of Maryland this Memorial Day weekend will mark the beginning of summer, the end of a season, and the start of family vacations to the Eastern Shore. For a core group of others this weekend will represent another year gone by without the presence of a sibling, spouse, or child. Whether it has been 70 years or 1 year, it is a loss shared by generations of families and members of the military that has once again become all too familiar in our National consciousness.

It has become common to hear people explain the meaning of Memorial Day around this time-- In most cases, reminding those who receive a day off to remember the sacrifice of those who have given their lives in service to our country. I understand the motive but disagree with the method. My time spent in the Marine Corps yielded plenty of inexorable memories of those taken before their time and yet I have no animosity toward those who would celebrate Memorial Day with all the joy that our country affords us. In truth, I wish I could.

Memorial Day is set aside in honor of those who gave their lives in service but we should celebrate their memory with as much spirit and vigor as those we have lost had in life. I see BBQ’s, block parties, and family get-togethers as the greatest tribute to them. It is only on Memorial Day that the entire country can take part in helping those that have lost loved ones remember what it is they were fighting for. Not for a BBQ, not for a party, and not for a funeral service--But for the freedom to celebrate, the the freedom to morn, or the freedom to do neither.

Pat Young
Catonsville MD.