Long before it became known as Memorial Day and celebrated on the third Monday in May –which,incidentally, allowed federal employees to enjoy a three-day holiday weekend giving marketing mavens the chance to turn a day honoring those who have died in service to our country into an occasion to shop—-it was simply called Decoration Day.
First celebrated on the 30th day of May in 1868, Decoration Day was created to honor all of the 620,000 who died in military service during the Civil War. According to History.com, that war “claimed more lives than any conflict in U.S. history”.
People across the country recognized the day by adorning the graves of those in their cities and towns who died on American soil during that war with flowers and decorations. Hence the name Decoration Day.
If you do nothing else this Memorial Day, why not take a moment to remember the 100s of thousands of individuals who have been involved in any wars that America has been involved in and have died for our freedoms. We owe them that respect. We owe them that honor.