Memorial Day

Memorial Day moves me. There is just something about honoring people who do brave things that I treasure.

If you have the opportunity to spend Memorial Day with senior citizens – please seize the moment. A country at war means a whole different thing to that generation. It’s something we should not lose touch with.
Again this year, we went to my mom’s senior complex to watch her town’s parade, and also to help her with some gardening which is becoming increasingly difficult for her to keep up with.

After the parade we finished up the gardening and gathered our stuff to leave. Since we were taking home some of the plants mom no longer wanted – we had quite a bit to carry, so my spry wife went to get the car. This year, because we were a little late getting there – we had to park a few blocks away as the senior housing is right on the parade route and the roads were already closed when we arrived.

I sat with my mom and had a cool drink while we waited for my Jeep-drivin’ wife to return.
And we waited… and waited….

Some time later she finally pulls into the driveway and we start loading up the Jeep with tools, lawn chairs and the plant materials. My adorable wife apologizes for the delay and tells us she had to give ‘a friend’ a lift.

You see…we parked just at the end of the parade route, and while she was getting the car an elderly man asked her for a lift back to the parade start point where his car was parked. He was clearly dressed as a veteran… and my patriotic wife’s Jeep was top down and decked out with small flags – what could be more appropriate.

This veteran was a bomber pilot from WWII station in England. He happily shared stories and showed off his badges and pins to my ever-grateful wife as they rode along. He told her this was the first year he chose to ride rather than march the entire route… this veteran is 90.
She was smitten of course.