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I posted this video a few days ago, but it is such a powerful performance by Judy Garland that I wanted to post it again on this Memorial Day.
Alright, President Obama is miffed that they have not “filled that damn hole” in the Gulf of Mexico, and because of that, he has to postpone his mini-vacation to Chicago for Memorial Day weekend.
Yes, its Memorial Day Weekend, and the President of the United States will NOT be present to lay a wreath at Arlington National Cemetery, the hallowed ground that pays homage to our greatest lost treasures– those who paid the ultimate sacrifice for OUR Freedom.
President Bill Clinton paid tribute to our fallen heroes on each of the eight Memorial Days of his Presidency. His successor, President George W. Bush, missed one of his eight Memorial Days. Oh, but the one he missed, in 2002, was to attend a Memorial Day commemoration– at Normandy. And it has been said that his father, George HW Bush, missed one of his 4 Memorial Days, but, given that he is a WWII veteran who was shot down in battle, I think he gets a pass.
Several years ago, my son and I had the honor to first spend a crisp Fall morning watching the cadets at the United States Naval Academy. Later in the day, we walked through the gates of Arlington National Cemetery. The honor guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier highlights the solemn sacrifice of our heroes.
Yes, President Obama will attend a ceremony at the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery, and the families of our heroes buried there will be appreciative of his presence. But it is at Arlington that the symbolism of this great nation comes full fold. The President, whose stature with our military as stressed thin as it is, should not be giving the appearance that his appearance on Memorial Day is secondary to his “mini-vacation”.
Wake up, Private, they will be here soon.
Colonel, wake up, it’s Memorial Day.
Somebody poke the Lieutenant over there and make sure he’s awake, too. They’re celebrating Memorial Day, and they will be here soon.
They will be here with small American flags pushed through the grass and earth on top of us.
They bring the fragrance of newly blossomed flowers, the stems still moist from the fresh cuts.
They will be here soon with trumpets to remember us and what we did in Arlington and Richmond, Leesburg, Gettysburg and Normandy.
They will come to read our names, touch our headstones.
They will think about you, over there, at Bunker Hill, and you, beyond, and the rest of the men from Fort McHenry.
There will be a salute with rifles, and it will be for you who came here from Guadalcanal and Pork Chop Hill, and you, beyond, from the jungles of Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Grenada.
Wake up, Sergeant, they are coming with a speech for you and your soul mates from Beirut and Desert Storm.
They will be here for you, the men and women from Somalia and Panama and the recent fallen in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Stay awake, now, sailor. They will be here soon with a song for you and your mates from the Iowa and the Arizona, the Pueblo, the USS Liberty, the Stark, and the Cole.
And you who served in time of peace but faced the fire and fever while patrolling freedom’s wall, they are coming because you gave the last full measure of devotion.
They are coming with quiet voices.
The assembled will again resolve that none of us, not one of us here, died in vain.
They will pledge that our rows will not lengthen without just cause or without the prayerful counsel of a united nation.
They will deliver to us the sweet, enduring promise that the United States of America shall not perish from the Earth.
They will be here soon, our sons and daughters, our wives and husbands, our mothers and fathers, our brothers and sisters, and those who never knew us.
They have not forgotten.
Posted at: http://www.americasright.com/2009/05/remember-true-meaning-of-memorial-day.html
