When I was a child, it had come to mean a day of remembrance of both the military and civilian dead. I remember going with my mom to place flowers on her parents' graves. In the years since declaring it a Federal holiday observed on the last Monday of May, some people have forgotten the purpose of the day altogether and remember it only as a three day weekend starting the summer season.
Let us not be those people who have forgotten the meaning of Memorial Day. Fly our flag on your porch to remind others what today is. Teach your children or grandchildren what this day means. Visit a military memorial or monument. Take some flowers out to the cemetery and decorate the graves of our loved ones and those of soldiers where no one has placed any. Take a moment and remember what the flags you see on the graves stand for. Reflect on the huge sacrifices made by those whose graves are marked with those small flags. Remember and honor those who served to keep this nation free.