Letter to the Editor - What Does This Weekend Mean to You?

Your contribution today guarantees Decorah News is asking the questions tomorrow. Act now. Dear Editor, What does this weekend mean to you? For many of us the Memorial Day weekend is a long weekend that marks the beginning of summer. After a long cold winter it means we can get outside. We can cook outside. We can come together with family and neighbors and enjoy our wonderful city by getting outdoors and enjoying food, drink and sunshine. All of this is wonderful and we should enjoy these summer activities. This is a great part of being American and celebrating common holidays. However, many families see Memorial Day as something different. For veterans and many families of veterans, Memorial Day is a day of remembrance. It is a day to remember family members, loved ones or fellow service members who gave the ultimate sacrifice. For those of us who fall into this category the weekend will be spent attending Memorial Day parades and ceremonies honoring these fallen heroes. We will spend it at cemeteries putting flags and other memorabilia on gravestones. We will be thinking of what these lives might have been had these folks gone on to live full lives. How many other lives they would have touched and made better because of their sense of duty and sacrifice. I think General Mark Hertling, the former commander of US Army Europe and the 7th Army, sums this up best. During his time in command he lost 253 soldiers in combat. He remembers every single one of these soldiers, He has a picture of each of these soldiers laminated and placed in a box that sits on his desk. Every day, to include Memorial Day, he takes out 3 or 4 of these pictures of these fallen soldiers and reads their bios and reflects on what their lives might have been. On the outside of that box are the words "Make it Matter." He then vows to make that day matter for those brave men and women. It is that simple, "MAKE IT MATTER!" So perhaps we all can do that this Memorial Day. Perhaps while we are outside enjoying the beginning of summer, we can take a moment and put away our differences. Perhaps we can remember that we are all just Americans. We are not Democrats, Republicans, Independents, Black, White, Hispanic, gay, straight, etc. We are simply Americans. Then we can all take a moment to vow at least for one day, Memorial Day, to MAKE IT MATTER! Kirsten Olson Decorah, Iowa Stay connected and informed! Join the free newsletter for curated news, trending topics, and insider perspectives you won't find anywhere else.