Recently there has been a movement in our country to erase history by removing statues and censoring what is revealed about the past. Today, however, we look back at history and remember those brave men and women who fought for our freedom, and made our country what it is today. As the famous song by Billy Ray Cyrus says, “All gave some … some gave all”. Let us not forget them or erase their memory.
History of Memorial Day:
Three years after the Civil War ended, on May 5, 1868, the head of an
organization of Union veterans — the Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) —
established Decoration Day as a time for the nation to decorate the
graves of the war dead with flowers. May 30th was chosen for Decoration
Day because it was believed that flowers would be in bloom all across
the country.
On
Memorial Day the flag should be flown at half-staff from sunrise until
noon only, then raised briskly to the top of the staff until sunset, in
honor of the nation’s battle heroes. In the early days of our country,
no regulations existed for flying the flag at half-staff and, as a
result, there were many conflicting policies. But on March 1, 1954,
President Dwight Eisenhower issued a proclamation on the proper times.
You
will notice in the collage above, that the flag is flying at
half-staff. Those pictures were taken during our visit to the American
Cemetery in Normandy, France. It was very moving seeing row after row of
graves. For more pictures from our visit to Normandy, see my previous
posts on the topic and also our cruise vacations website.
I've
mentioned several times in the past about the opportunity to relive
history while on a cruise vacation. This is especially true in Europe
due to the large battle field from the World Wars. Whether your cruise
vacation takes you to Normandy, France or Honolulu, Hawaii, please take
some time to visit a historical site and pay your respects to the troops
that fought to keep America strong. We have done so on several cruises
and of all the trips we've taken, those tend to stand out in my mind.
Don't forget to bring you children with you so that they too can learn
about war first hand.
As Albert Schweitzer said "...
Wargraves are the great communicators of peace ..." Perhaps another more
striking quote was by George Santayanan who said "Those who cannot
learn from history are doomed to repeat it."
And who can
forget those immortal words of President John F. Kennedy: "And so, my
fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you - ask what
you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not
what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the
freedom of man. "
To the brave men and women, living and deceased, who have taken President Kennedy's charge to heart, Thank You for your Service. May we never forget the sacrifices you have made.
To those men and women who didn't pay the ultimate sacrifice, cruise lines would like to thank you on this Memorial Day and throughout the year. Following are just a couple examples of cruise lines that provide discounts to current military and veterans and their families. Ask us how you can take advantage of these special rates.
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| Royal Caribbean Offers |
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| Princess Cruises Offers |
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