Robin SmithNine days ago, May 20, marked Armed Forces Day. On that day, a nice trio of Club Level Atlanta Braves tickets came my way as a benefit of work I’d done for a corporate client. The baseball franchise paid special tribute to the men and women of the military before the game with a flyover, and stirring musical performances honored various branches of the armed services throughout the game and between innings.
As good consumers, our group of three visited the club store to browse the latest T-shirts, caps and souvenirs. While standing in the checkout line, I observed a woman openly weeping as she stood motionless watching a tribute video that played on big-screen TVs mounted just above the bank of registers. I overheard her being asked by a store attendant if she had a family member in the military. Her response was, “I did.”
And that’s when I joined her with a wet face of tears. Here stood a mother, wife, someone who had lost a family member in service to our nation; no, actually, in service to every American who seeks to live in freedom and liberty.
Today is Memorial Day. While this woman joined millions participating in Armed Forces Day, she along with too many others are experiencing Memorial Day in a very personal way.
Decoration Day was first officially observed May 30, 1868, to honor the dead of the Civil War and to unite the hearts of Americans. Placing flowers to “decorate” the graves of 20,000 fallen heroes of both the Confederacy and the Union at what is now Arlington National Cemetery, 5,000 Americans began an annual tradition. In 1971, Memorial Day was deemed a national holiday, and in 2000, a Congressional Resolution established the National Moment of Remembrance requesting that Americans pause from all activities for a moment of silence at 3 p.m. local time.
Most Americans have a three-day weekend. Most will fire up the grill, enjoy some barbecue, or have fun at the lake, pool or some outdoor activity. But, at 3 p.m. local time, stop. Simply, stop.
After seeing the tear-streaked face of the woman at the Atlanta Braves game, I have another image to recall reminding me of the cost for freedom.
Our freedoms are immense: freedom to worship, freedom to speak, freedom to work, earn, save and spend, freedom to achieve, freedom to vote, freedom to serve others. The list goes on.
Yet, too many pay no price for any of those freedoms. Too many see a small group go to war to defend America’s greatness while they go meet friends at their favorite coffee shop or brewhouse. A growing segment of our population fixates on free this, free that and their right for someone to subsidize their existence while being oblivious to the notion that so many have died for our liberties.
There have been just under 1.5 million Americans who have died while in service to to the country. Of those, about three quarters of a million died in “battle deaths.” Their sacrifices translate into our freedom.
On Jan. 27 each year, International Holocaust Remembrance Day remind the world of the 6 million Jews exterminated in the vile acts of Hitler’s regime. In Israel, at 11 a.m. local time, everything stops. Pedestrians become stationary. Automobiles stop, and drivers exit their vehicles, standing for the two minutes of respect on the roadside.
At 3 p.m. today, stop. Say a prayer of thanks that God has truly blessed America through those willing to sacrifice. Be grateful.
Robin Smith, a former Tennessee Republican Party chairwoman, owns Rivers Edge Alliance.