Memorial Day

Playing at war and actually living through it are two radically different things. On this day in particular I am so grateful to all of those who put their lives on the line to secure the freedoms that I enjoy.  And I remember that freedom isn't free.  It has cost hundreds of thousands their lives to guarantee it.

My great-uncle, Harold Brown, is one of them.  He left Cal Berkley and a young, pregnant wife to do his bit "over there."  Towards the end of the Great War, he volunteered to try to get through to "The Lost Battalion."  Three others had tried and failed.  He would be the fourth.  He died in the effort.  He received the silver star for his selflessness and his example stirs me to this day.  He never saw his daughter who was born while he was away.  He never got to hold his wife again, or enjoy a Sunday afternoon relaxing at home.  He sacrificed all of that to go beyond the call of duty.  To me, he is what Memorial Day is all about.  I am humbled to think that our country has been blessed with hundreds of thousands of others like him.  And I pray that I will be worthy of their sacrifice.

The link below gives a detailed account of some very brave Americans.  Take a few minutes to check it out

The Lost Battalion