Memorial Day

Albeit it's a national holiday, I went to work for a few hours today because I missed 1.5 days last week and because you can accomplish a lot more on a holiday ( since there are less people working who can potentially slow me down).

My little department is made up of immigrants ( with an exeption of 1 born American who wasn't there today), so none of us 'grew up' with a Memorial Day. So when one of my coworkers heard me wish a "happy Memorial Day' to one of the residents he asked me what exactly are we celebrating? Instead of answering him directly, I asked him ' what does it sound like', and ' how many years have you lived in America that you still don't know what's being celebrated?'. I gave him the brief description of the holiday after I told him off for living in the country for 7 years and not caring to find out the cause for 'the bbqs and sales'.

Later this evening, after the kids were finally sleeping and the adults were enjoying the obligatory barbeque (burgers and hot dogs on a George Foreman grill version), my sister and I started discussing some people's short memories when it came to late saddam and America's war in Iraq.

Now just to be clear, I'm not really into politics. I am an ostrich. I usually let you mind your own business if you don't put it in my face and let me peacefully mind my business. And along the same lines I don't care for wars. But in the land of freedom and opportunity it somehow becomes so easy to forget that as a bumper sticker reads ' Freedom isn't Free".

If freedom was free - no lives lost, no emotional and physical wounds, no billions spent- would all the immigrants have come here today and in the past, or would they have remained in their 'mother' countries and enjoyed the 'freedoms' there?

To quote our president "It's Memorial Day. It's a day to honor not only those who have died in combat, but it's a day to honor those who continue to serve," Bush said.

Peace.