![\"memorial](\"https:\/\/kandynolesstevens.files.wordpress.com\/2014\/05\/memorial-day.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nOld Glory waves exuberantly over the verdant grasses of the prairie as families make the somber pilgrimage to honor the lives of the ones held now only in their hearts.<\/p>\n
For this day, we remember.<\/em><\/p>\n Silently and contemplatively, we remember our loved ones that have gone on to their eternal rest.<\/p>\n More so, we remember the sacrifices, a\u00a0cost so high we dare not utter it aloud,\u00a0made by others on our behalf.<\/p>\n Our usual\u00a0sojourn\u00a0for son\u00a0delayed, we knew exactly the place he would want us to go this year.<\/p>\n Nothing hits a small town harder than the loss of one of their own children, our greatest legacy. When that loss is the result of a war, we can never erase the pain.<\/p>\n It is a sadness that lingers because it is a constant reminder at how precious life truly is. Our thoughts are cloaked by a thin veil of mourning; evoking such a strong soul response . . . our worst nightmares can and do come true.<\/p>\n For this day, we remember.<\/em><\/p>\n We want to shout to the heavens that we will not forget your sons and your daughters, but protocol is silence.<\/p>\n We were not alone as we walked silently up the car-lined dirt road to the cemetery on the prairie.<\/p>\n We\u00a0went to honor a soldier our son revered. We are not alone; more people are in the cemetery than live in the nearby town. A grieving parent’s\u00a0 greatest horror is that their child’s name will not be recalled.\u00a0 Today is not that day.<\/p>\n The soldier\u2019s parents are there. We hug them tight, whispering, \u201cYour son will never be forgotten.\u201d<\/p>\n They echo the same whisper to us.<\/p>\n For this day, we remember<\/em>.<\/p>\n We remember that freedom has never been free, and we know that liberty come at a cost.<\/p>\n A stone surrounded by patriotic flowers and ribbons is our evidence.\u00a0 One of our own paid that ultimate price.\u00a0 He was taken much too soon.<\/p>\n For this day, we remember.<\/em><\/p>\n We remember gold star flags are bought at a thieves ransom,\u00a0a price higher than anyone should ever have pay.<\/p>\n Tears overwhelm our wearied lids as we know that sometimes daddies, brothers, husbands, sons, cousins, wives, daughters, mothers and friends do not return.<\/p>\n For this day, we remember.<\/em><\/p>\n We grieve and yet simultaneously, we stand next to our own soldiers, quietly whispering prayers\u00a0of thanksgiving –\u00a0they made it home.<\/em><\/p>\n Later, we gather at park aptly named Liberty to hear the order of the day and reflect upon its meaning.<\/p>\n We watch as a generation of men and women, the ones who helped make this country great, lay wreaths, humbly recollect the stories of the lost, and cry tears for friends\u00a0and loved ones\u00a0that didn\u2019t make it home.<\/p>\n We realize that this generation, remembering all who have taken up the America’s call, is aging\u00a0before our eyes. \u00a0Will\u00a0this continue\u00a0without them?<\/p>\n For this day, we remember.<\/em><\/p>\n We remember that those who are serving today\u00a0work in conditions far worse than this drizzling rain, and we stand, wet, as if our small sacrifice honors what they do every day.<\/p>\n Watching them in their starched white and black\u00a0American Legion attire, we know the salute is coming, and yet, collectively the entire crowd of souls jumps after the explosive first round fires away.<\/p>\n My children don\u2019t know a world where this is a day of celebration.<\/p>\n For this, we are proud they don\u2019t because for this day,\u00a0we remember.<\/em><\/p>\n Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. John 15:13<\/span>\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" This past Monday, Memorial Day, was spent the way it typically is for our family – albeit in a different location. This day is one we hold dear. Normally our remembrances\u00a0occur at the place where two special people (my father-in-law\u00a0and our son) are laid. There the deer really do roam free as the geese and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[31,969,970,850,379,971,530,972,973,974,975],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1364"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1364"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1364\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1364"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1364"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.realsweetgrace.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1364"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}