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And I'm proud to be an American,
where at least I know I'm free.
And I won't forget the men who died,
who gave that right to me. ~ Lee Greenwood
The first time I visited our nation's capital many years ago, I was struck by the extraordinary size and power (as well as the sheer number) of the beautiful and moving monuments to be found there. In a sense, the entire city serves as a monument to dead people, not only to help us remember past presidents and famous historical figures who have died, but also to honor those soldiers who have given their lives in service to our country.
The beautiful video below was produced in 2010 by a young man looking to honor his grandfather. In the introduction to the piece, he writes, "Honor Air is an effort to charter flights to the National Mall bringing war veterans to see the memorials. Even though he served during WWII, my Grandfather who is 94 chose not to go because he didn't want to take the seat of a veteran who saw combat. Part of the reason I produced this piece was to bring the monuments to him."
Not all of us can travel to Washington D.C. this Memorial Day, but we can take a few moments to let these beautiful images bring the monuments to us. And we can take time to pause and remember, to honor the fallen in our own individual and personal ways, and most especially to extend our heartfelt gratitude to the precious members of their families who mourn their losses each and every day.
Your feedback is welcome! Please feel free to leave a comment or a question, or share a tip, a related article or a resource of your own in the Comments section below. If you’d like Grief Healing Blog updates delivered right to your inbox, you’re cordially invited to subscribe to our weekly Grief Healing Newsletter. Sign up here.
Related Resources:
where at least I know I'm free.
And I won't forget the men who died,
who gave that right to me. ~ Lee Greenwood
The first time I visited our nation's capital many years ago, I was struck by the extraordinary size and power (as well as the sheer number) of the beautiful and moving monuments to be found there. In a sense, the entire city serves as a monument to dead people, not only to help us remember past presidents and famous historical figures who have died, but also to honor those soldiers who have given their lives in service to our country.
The beautiful video below was produced in 2010 by a young man looking to honor his grandfather. In the introduction to the piece, he writes, "Honor Air is an effort to charter flights to the National Mall bringing war veterans to see the memorials. Even though he served during WWII, my Grandfather who is 94 chose not to go because he didn't want to take the seat of a veteran who saw combat. Part of the reason I produced this piece was to bring the monuments to him."
Not all of us can travel to Washington D.C. this Memorial Day, but we can take a few moments to let these beautiful images bring the monuments to us. And we can take time to pause and remember, to honor the fallen in our own individual and personal ways, and most especially to extend our heartfelt gratitude to the precious members of their families who mourn their losses each and every day.
Your feedback is welcome! Please feel free to leave a comment or a question, or share a tip, a related article or a resource of your own in the Comments section below. If you’d like Grief Healing Blog updates delivered right to your inbox, you’re cordially invited to subscribe to our weekly Grief Healing Newsletter. Sign up here.
Related Resources:
- 7 Things You Didn't Know About Memorial Day
- Amazing War Hero Animals
- Angel Flight: Video and Song
- Friend Grief and the Military: Band of Friends
- Giving Thanks on Memorial Day
- Honor Flight Network
- Learning to Heal, One Memorial Day at a Time
- Making the Most of Memorial Day
- Memorial Day and the Widow(er)s I Know
- Memorial Day: Honoring Our Veterans with Great Care
- Memorial Day: Remembering The Fallen, And Those Who Love Them
- Memorial Day Tribute
- Military Working Dogs: Canine Heroes
- TAPS: Tragedy Assistance Program for Survivors
- The True Meaning of Memorial Day
- This Is Honor Flight: Video
- VA Caregiver Support
- Vice President Joe Biden Discusses Grief & Loss: Video
Marty - Thank y ou for this lovely tribute. I would like to share with you a poem I wrote on Memorial Day 2002 while at the Vietnam Memorial.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.griefcorner.com/2012/05/grief-happens.html
Please share.
Your tribute to the fallen is haunting and beautiful, Shep. Thank you for sharing it with all of us!
DeleteI am so pleased to see you here in the blogosphere. You're an excellent teacher, a skilled clinician and a terrific author. You already know that your book, "Helping Grieving People - When Tears Are Not Enough" is one of my very favorites ~ and now I look forward to following your blog! Hooray for all of us!