Mike King

Memorial Day Thoughts

I have an odd jumble of feelings during the Memorial Day weekend. There is of course the happiness of just being able to kick back, forget about work, and get together with friends and family and relax. Or the equally satisfying happiness of staying away from family and friends, thinking one’s own thoughts, or reading a book, or simply pondering one’s place in the scheme of things. But what stays with me throughout the weekend, floating lightly beneath the surface of everyday events, is an uneasy sense of loss, of gratitude to unseen others, of duty unfulfilled. 

I’m a slow learner. I still don’t know what I want to be when I grow up. (Way too late, I decided I wanted to be an astronaut). Much to my wife’s chagrin, I really believe I haven’t grown up yet, and have to rely on her “adultness” to keep our marriage and life on an even keel. I’m a pretty smart guy, but sometimes it takes me years to form an opinion, and I marvel at the ease with which people can converse with one another, where I typically have to rehearse a few phrases in head prior to joining in a discussion. I grew up with an intuitive knowledge that war is evil, and it would be insane to join the armed services, but it took me many years to figure out that one of our most essential roles, as an American, is that of the soldier. 

One of the things I do is help engineer stuff for America’s defense, but I can tell you, putting my life on the line is not in my current job description. That’s what our soldiers do and have done for a couple of hundred years, and I have come to the realization that I truly stand in awe of that commitment and sacrifice. 

Lest I berate myself too much here, and lose sight of the topic, I’ll get back to Memorial Day. I do not personally know someone who has been lost in combat. But I do know that those who have fallen, and those currently on guard, are worth remembering. I’m glad to see the latest blog on Patch concerning Don Ashley and his son J.D. which delves into the reality of a soldier’s sacrifice.