Today Is The Day

Memorial Day. Today is the day. Many of us fill today with family and picnics and laughter…a day we don’t have to get up and go to work. On Friday we thought…ah yes, a three-day weekend. Many of us don’t consider much beyond these things.

Memorial Day was originally called Decoration Day, and it started three years after the end of the Civil War in 1868 when Union soldiers began decorating the graves of those who had died. Memorial Day then became a national holiday in 1971…a day to remember those who had died in all of the conflicts to date. If you read about the United States Military Casualties of War on Wikipedia you will find these statistics: since 1775  the total of deaths number 1.3 million…and the American Civil War and World War II account for over 1 million deaths.

And the number of deaths from war continue to rise…all over the world.

So today is set aside in our calendar to preserve the memory of…and that, at least, we should pause and do. But if the memory is all we preserve, we do all of those who have fallen a deep injustice and disservice. It is not enough to feel sadness for lives lost or to feel gratefulness for the freedom and opportunity that we enjoy. It is a greater work to honor their lives by standing for peace…by dedicating our lives to practice peace in all situations and in all circumstances. Peace is really the goal of all war isn’t it…to remove the enemy so that we can live and prosper in peace?

So lets begin today. Lets choose to honor all of the men and women who have served and died for our country in the wars of this nation by choosing peace in our personal lives, right here and right now. Lets treat each other with dignity and respect. Lets return compassion and understanding to our everyday lives. Lets take responsibility for our mis-steps and forgive others for theirs.

“There is not a way to peace. Peace is the way.” Deepak Chopra, from Peace is the Way

Peace always

Paula