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June 03, 2007
Six days of Memories
penraker and I were apparently in the same city on Memorial Day. We were in different universes, however.
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| From if you squint, you can see the Washington Monument |
My Memorial Day was spent at Arlington National Cemetery. There I wandered among the bodies of those who died in service to our country.
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| From the silent dead |
I could not ask them what they thought of their sacrifice-- I could ask, but the only answer I would receive is the echo of my own thoughts. That's the point, I suppose. We must ask ourselves: is it better to have these men and women in the ground? Or upright and asking us questions?
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| From Life, Liberty, etc |
Don't get me wrong: Arlington is alive. I saw children playing amongst the tombstones, a bit of flirting between half-horrified teens. Here and there, Marines were trying to be solemn-- a warm late spring day with fresh-cut grass and the air thick with heady scents-- the Marines failed...
Except for one guy. I didn't get a picture of him. He was aided in his walk by a cane. Half his face was in a bandage. An inch one way, and he was still in Iraq, or Afghanistan. An inch the other way and he was still in Arlington. Just one more white marker on green grass...
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| From "It is sweet and right, to die for your country |
Penraker seems to be calling for more death, more young heroes to die in order to dote on the "magnificence of their sacrifice". Perhaps with the blood of children we are purchasing something valuable, something that cannot be gained any other way. To not even grieve for those who won't be coming home cheapens their lives. On the Day of Memorial, tears are more patriotic than paeans...
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| From Honorable retirement |
Posted by Andrew at June 3, 2007 09:12 AM