In Memoriam

Memorial Day.

I'm not old (or eloquent) enough to fully encompass all that this day means without sounding ridiculous, so I'll tread lightly.

In history class, it didn't take me long to realize that the study of war is the cornerstone of the subject. All of the other aspects of the study (cultural, demographic, technological, etc.) hinged on wars and the outcome thereof. Cultural progress is only possible when a nation's citizens aren't constantly worried about being shot at or bombed.

I seriously doubt that an Iraqi poetry reading would be horribly successful or well-attended.

We owe the soldiers who fought in American wars everything we have today. Everything. Our homes, our cars, our paychecks- even our lives and families.

When the Russians invaded Germany toward the end of WWII, they inflicted the largest known instance of mass rape ever recorded. Another scenario, a few lost battles here and there- and that could have happened here.

Take it back a bit- what if those farmers had not decided to stand their ground at Lexington and Concord? What if they had chosen to go home to their families instead of fight for the idea of freedom? What if, at Valley Forge, they had grown weary of seeing their neighbors sell supplies to the British and called it a day?

I repeat it in the hopes that repetition will ensure what the weak power of my words cannot- we owe our soldiers everything.

Everything.