Mixed feelings on this Memorial Day
Not too long ago like multiple Americans do my wife and I made a pilgrimage to Omaha Beach It was a gorgeous sunny September day The sky was crystal clear with a mild temperature no wind and a lovely quietness Looking out at the English Channel towards England I thought This is crazy I stated to my wife How could such a pristine site once be a place of horror Soldiers had died where we stood Like a lot of boys my age I fretted and prayed for a high lottery number to avoid the military draft in and felt immensely relieved when I got lucky I was self-absorbed cowardly disguised as a pacifist and way too soft-hearted to be a soldier Patriotism meant little to me Secretly though I envied those who had the courage and a desire to serve our country In old age I still envy them It seems as I get closer to the no-tomorrow stage of life I admire and am grateful to them more than ever when I read and listen to their harrowing and horrific stories of combat their pride in having protected America s way of life and especially seeing their tears as they speak about their comrades their buddies who never returned Richard Schwartz It s Memorial Day So I ll visit the graves of family friends long-gone and in recent times departed one just last week and of unit the meager I have known who died in war like Gordie Walensky marine the kid two grades ahead of me in high school ambushed in Da Nang South Vietnam and Morrie my dad s best high school friend who died in Italy in After that comes the barbecuing drinking maybe a beer or two playing particular catch with several buddies catching a few sun and watching the Twins and Timberwolves After all Memorial Day is also the unofficial celebration of the beginning of summer But this year is different There s a chill in the air Things seem way off-kilter in America No need to list the whys Everyone knows When I was a boy and well into manhood when I got into a heap of trouble my mother would say to me I love you but right now I don t like you The first time she stated that maybe I was six or seven it made no sense to me How can you love and not like someone at the same time Now on this Memorial Day my mother s words make more sense possibly more than ever I love my country but right now I don t like it Richard Schwartz of Minneapolis is a retired educator The post Mixed feelings on this Memorial Day appeared first on MinnPost
