Author Support: Quiet Power of Memorial Day at Home

WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 25: U.S. military vetera...

Memorial Day reminds me that Washington is so much more than politics.

In remembrance of P-38 Lightning pilots who died in WWII, many squadron friends of G. C. Primm, WWII veteran, captain, Army Air Force

America is more than politics, governing, and congressional elections. We remember that fact on this Memorial Day weekend, when we listen to military families whose loved ones died in service to country. That is what this Day is all about, to remember the fallen. Memorial Day starts in homes, families, neighborhoods.

There is a quiet power that is keenly aware and ready to respond in times of need in seen and unseen actions. This quiet power motivates many young men and women who volunteer to serve in the military aware that it may cost them their lives.

I have been privileged to witness this quiet power in a family waiting at home. Thankfully, my brother did return from WWII. I was 2 years old when he left home, soon after Pearl Harbor, to enlist to train for air combat. I was not exposed to my parents' anguish over my brother's life in the war, for they kept going day by day. I saw my mother as a smiling person and my dad as the one who worked and was reluctant to discipline me. I loved that. I remember the tone of my mother when flowers came one Mother's Day and I knew they were from my brother who was flying airplanes somewhere in war, but even the word "war" does not sink in when it's far from home. A child often does not know the anguish but can observe their attitude of hope. Parents may not speak of worry or hope, but live within both. Their quiet courage is so amazing that it cannot be fully appreciated until years later.

Memorial Day reminds us that those who lose their lives in service to their country are from among us, from our neighborhood, town, county, state...or home. Their parents go through what mine did, and then worse. The worst. We honor the sons and daughters who died in military service as fighters or as part of support and help teams. We honor the fallen...their ultimate sacrifice.

This article has been re-edited to reflect that Memorial Day is the day when the nation honors those who died in war and service with the military. Veterans Day honors those who served and returned home.

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The Washington Monument, Lincoln Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, Pentagon 9/11 Memorial, Arlington National Cemetery...these and more are at the heart of the character of the United States of America.

Writers, now is the time to begin writing something for this coming July 4 holiday.