What is Memorial Day?

Memorial Day is not about shopping trips, backyard barbeques, or the first day on the lake, rather Memorial Day is a time to reflect on those who gave their lives in battle or in service to their community, state and nation, those who gave of themselves for all that we hold dear to our hearts.  Memorial Day, in the strictest sense of the word did not begin after the Civil War, as most of us think it started.  As far back as 431 BC, during the Peloponnesian War, some of the dead soldiers from Athens were brought home for public burial; and on that winter day, and with much pomp and circumstance, the speaker was Pericles which would become known as “The Funeral Oration of Pericles”.

Pericles gave great testimony on why they served in the defense of their country.  “They gave their lives for the common good and thereby won for themselves the praise that never grows old and the most distinguished of all graves, not those in which they lie, but where their glory remains in eternal memory, always there at the right time to inspire speech and action”.  He describes what might be on a monument for the fallen as “…not only does the epitaph inscribed on monuments in their native country commemorate them, but in lands not their own.

Pericles then said, “Now it is for you to emulate them, knowing that happiness requires freedom and freedom requires courage; do not shrink from the dangers of war”.  It is quite evident that from the names on the panels behind me, that the citizens of Pittsfield do not evade the dangers of serving our Town, State and Nation. It was almost 2300 years later that on May 5, 1868, General John A. Logan, as Commander in Chief, of the Grand Army of the Republic, issued General Order No. 11 which proclaimed that “The 30th of May, 1868, is designated for the purpose of strewing with flowers, or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades of the late rebellion, and whose bodies now lie in almost every city, village, and hamlet church yard in the land. In this observance no form of ceremony is prescribed, but posts and comrades will in their own way arrange such fitting services and testimonials of respect as circumstances may permit.” General Logan also made a statement that I find very intuitive, in his General Order, he stated “If other eyes grow dull, other hands slack, and other hearts cold in the solemn trust, ours shall keep it well as long as the light and warmth of life remain to us”.

Between 1868 and 1966, several towns both in the North and the South laid claim to being the first official community to hold the title of the “Birthplace of Memorial Day”. In 1966, the Federal Government made the decision that the birthplace of Memorial Day was Waterloo, NY, which held the first “Memorial Day” on May 5, 1866 - because the town had made Memorial Day an annual, community-wide event during which businesses closed and residents decorated the graves of soldiers with flowers and flags. As time went by, the date of May 30^th would soon become the traditional date for paying respect for those who had borne the cost of battle; that sacrificed their very future to ensure that our nation remained free.

            Not long afterwards the U.S. Congress changed Memorial Day to the last Monday of May.  No doubt they realized a three day weekend would appeal to voters and would give them more time off from their jobs, and hopefully, visit our National Parks.

            Now, we have sales that state “Memorial Day Mattress sale”; “Memorial Day auto sale” etc, nothing carries forth the true meaning of this day, no longer do all know the importance of this special day.

            The names on the panels behind me reflect the true grit and determination of our small community and others like us across our land, of responding whenever our nation put out the call from the early days of our War for Independence to the present conflicts.  I know that future names will be added, some with a little star to show they died in battle; some might even be reflected by a small mark to show they might be a Prisoner of War or listed as Missing in Action.  Do we not owe them some time to reflect on their sacrifices?  Do we not owe the family members of those that no longer have a loved one at home respect and reverence for their sacrifice?

            Each of us that have put on a uniform whether it was in peace or war understood the hazards it entailed.  We take time to honor those who came before us and thank those that have returned home for their courage and self sacrifice.  Earlier, I spoke of Pericles’ words of “Not only does the epitaph inscribed on monuments in their native country commemorate them, but in lands not their own”.  I echo these words here so that we can remember those that did not come home, they lie in foreign lands where they fought and died in such places such as England, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg. 

We should always remember the Sailors and Marines that lie in the tomb of the USS Arizona in Pearl Harbor, HI. And let us not forget the loss of Pittsfield’s own Lt. John James Dunne Jr.; while flying an A-6 Intruder aircraft as a Naval Flight Officer in support of Operation Southern Watch off the Aircraft Carrier USS Independence on Oct. 14, 1994.  If you still want to know what Memorial Day is all about, there is the answer.

© Merrill A. Vaughan