Memorial Day Weekend

Decorated graves at Arlington Cemetery

It is Memorial Day weekend. The holiday that was originally known as Decoration Day is a U.S. federal holiday intended to memorialize and mourn those who died while serving in the United States armed forces. It is observed on the last Monday of May but it had been observed on May 30 when I was a boy. That was also my parents’ wedding anniversary. It was Decoration Day from 1868 to 1970 and the idea was that we would decorate the graves of soldiers, memorials to fallen soldiers, and perhaps our homes with flags and flowers.

Growing up it was a day off from school, a time to visit cemeteries, a parade in town, and some official laying of memorials on graves and at statues. As a boy, I liked the parade which had bands and all kinds of military vehicles. Veterans would do a 21-gun salute at a memorial staue in town and that was thrilling to see and hear. Every kid on my block had military toys and some kinds of military hats and clothing and playing soldiers was a common summer game. That all changed as the Vietnam War heated up and friends and neighbors went to fight and we approached our own military draft year.

Memorial Day also became the unofficial beginning of summer in the United States. Even though in New Jersey we still had school till at least the middle of June, people made their first trips down the shore. The Atlantic Ocean was cold but the boardwalks were open and if you lucked out with the weather it would be 80-90 degrees and feel like summer.

There were thunderstorms Friday night and today is on and off rain but Sunday and Monday look to be hot and summerish. We are staying home this weekend. We will see friends on Monday, probably do some barbequing, might watch a parade, but no cemetery visits. My father served in the Navy in WWII but he made a point of telling me that this day was to remember those who died as soldiers. That wasn’t him. It was those he served with who didn’t come home and have post-war lives. Armed Forces Day (which is earlier in May) is an unofficial holiday honoring those currently serving in the armed forces, and Veterans Day (November 11), which honors all those who have served in the United States Armed Forces.

Like many holidays, Memorial Day has lost some of its focus for many Americans. Turning some holidays, such as Labor Day, into three-day weekends has softened that focus. Labor Day, for example, is now more often thought of as the unofficial end of summer rather than something about workers, unions and labor.

On Monday, we have the National Moment of Remembrance. This short, simple annual event asks Americans, wherever they are at 3:00 p.m. local time on Memorial Day, to pause for a duration of one minute to remember those who have died in military service to the United States. That certainly is (as the expression states) the least you can do to mark the true holiday.

National Moment of Remembrance

A short reminder post that the National Moment of Remembrance, established by Congress, asks Americans, wherever they are at 3 p.m. local time on Memorial Day, to pause in an act of national unity for a duration of one minute.

Congress officially established the National Moment of Remembrance to put “memorial” back into the holiday and reclaim the day for the purpose in which it was intended.

In Paradelle, that time is in 30 minutes from this posting. The time 3 p.m. was chosen because it is the time when most Americans are enjoying their freedoms on this national holiday.

The Moment was not meant to replace traditional Memorial Day events; rather, it is an act of national unity in which all Americans, alone or with family and friends, honor those who died in service to the United States.

As laid out in Public Law 106-579, the National Moment of Remembrance is to be practiced by all Americans throughout the nation at 3pm local time. At the same time, a number of organizations throughout the country also observe the Moment. For example,  all Major League Baseball games halt and Amtrak train whistles sound.

Memorial Weekend

Memorial Day is observed on the last Monday of May. It was formerly known as Decoration Day and commemorates all men and women who have died in military service for the United States.

Many people visit cemeteries and memorials and participate or watch parades during this weekend. But Memorial Day Weekend has become seen as the start of the summer season. When did that change occur?

Decoration Day it originated in the years following the Civil War. When that war ended in spring 1865, it had claimed more lives than any conflict in U.S. history. It required the establishment of the country’s first national cemeteries. It was soon after that some towns started having springtime tributes by decorating their graves with flowers and reciting prayers.(Waterloo, New York was designated in 1966 as the official birthplace of Memorial Day.)

In 1868, General John A. Logan, leader of an organization for Northern Civil War veterans suggested a nationwide day of remembrance on May 30th as the day to decorate graves of fallen soldiers. later that month. He chose that day because it wasn’t the anniversary of any particular battle.

After the two World Wars, soldiers killed in those wars were also included. Memorial Day continued to be observed on May 30, no matter when the date fell on the calendar.

Then, in 1968, Congress passed the Uniform Monday Holiday Act. Included in this Act was the establishment of Memorial Day as the last Monday in May in order to create a three-day weekend for federal employees. That went into effect in 1971. It became an official federal holiday that year and also a public holiday, so schools and most businesses are closed.

My parents were married on May 30, mostly because my father could have a longer time off from work, but also because they thought it would mean they would always have their anniversary as a work-free day. My mother said that their honeymoon in Washington, DC was a big city-wide celebration, as if everyone was celebrating their wedding – and it would always seem that way. With 1971, that changed.

This year May 30 falls on the Thursday after Memorial Day Weekend.

Hopefully, this weekend is more than barbecues or a first trip to the beach or summer place.

The National Moment of Remembrance, established by Congress, asks Americans, wherever they are at 3 p.m. local time on Memorial Day, to pause in an act of national unity for a duration of one minute. The time 3 p.m. was chosen because it is the time when most Americans are enjoying their freedoms on the national holiday. The Moment does not replace traditional Memorial Day events; rather, it is an act of national unity in which all Americans, alone or with family and friends, honor those who died in service to the United States.

Armistice Day

wreath of poppies via Wikimedia Commons

Most countries changed the name of the holiday after World War II, to honor veterans of that and subsequent conflicts. Most member states of the Commonwealth of Nations adopted the name Remembrance Day, while the United States chose All Veterans Day (later shortened to Veterans Day) to explicitly honor veterans of all conflicts. “Armistice Day” remains the name of the holiday in France, Belgium and New Zealand.

In many parts of the world, people observe two consecutive minutes moment of silence at 11:00 a.m. local time as a sign of respect in the first minute for the roughly 20 million people who died in the war, and in the second minute dedicated to the living left behind, including wives, children and families.

I mentioned to a friend that I was writing a post for Veterans Day and she said, “For next May?” She is certainly not the only person to confuse Veterans Day with Memorial Day. Memorial Day has become synonymous with the start of  summer – and diluted in meaning because of that. Veterans Day celebrates the service of all U.S. military veterans, while Memorial Day is a day of remembering the men and women who died while serving.

The Poetry Foundation mounted a nice page of links collected by Becca Klaver of classic and contemporary poems that explore Veterans Day.

Poems on this theme have a wide range of approaches.

War’s impact is felt in the veterans’ hospitals visited by Ben Belitt in “Veteran’s Hospital.”

“Veterans of the Seventies” by Marvin Bell looks at soldiers who went AWOL, while   “Debridement” by Michael S. Harper looks at Congressional Medal of Honor winners.

Other poems include “Armistice” by Sophie Jewett, “Troop Train” by Karl Shapiro and “Song of Napalm” by Bruce Weigl along with articles and essays.

Yusef Komunyakaa’s  poem, “Facing It” about visiting the  Vietnam War Memorial  in Washington, D.C.  duplicates the experience I had the first time I saw the Memorial. I watched people around me touch one of the 52,022 names on the polished black stone as if they were touching the person.

Komunyakaa’s poem begins:

My black face fades,
hiding inside the black granite.
I said I wouldn’t
dammit: No tears.
I’m stone. I’m flesh.
My clouded reflection eyes me
like a bird of prey, the profile of night
slanted against morning. I turn
this way—the stone lets me go.
I turn that way—I’m inside
the Vietnam Veterans Memorial
again, depending on the light
to make a difference.

Another article on the site asks Can Poetry Console a Grieving Public? I’m not sure that it always can, but I know it often tries.