Memorial Day: Honoring Sacrifice

Some lives are lost, and some lives are taken. Others are given. This weekend we pause our schedules as a nation to remember and honor the sacrifice of those who decided to commit their lives to our freedom, our future, our way of life.

These heroes, never to be forgotten, left classrooms and workplaces and loved ones to get on buses and planes. They arrived in camps to be transformed through grueling training. Millions of those soldiers then landed in unknown combat zones halfway around the world where conditions were often so horrendous they could only be described as hell on earth, realities terrifying enough that some anticipated death as a release.

Since the opening of the American Revolution, over 1 million have been mortally wounded in service to our country. More than that have survived wounds. The stories of these men and women may often go unrealized but are impossible to ignore once they are encountered. As time rolls on we lose many of these accounts to the vacuum of history. Yet new conflicts unfold, and new heroes rise up, leaders willing to stand in the gap between freedom and tyranny for you and me.

In the 21st century, phrases like Medal of Honor and Call of Duty often bring to mind hi-tech video games. The appeal of these games is the intensity of the action, the conviction that there are bad guys battling for evil, and the desire to be a hero. Gamers inherently understand these things, but screen graphics are enjoyable and pose no threat. The true stories that captivate and stir us are borne of pain and love.

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The highest tribute a soldier can receive is the Medal of Honor. Recipients of this exclusive recognition perform feats summed up this way by their nation.

“For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of  life above and beyond the call of duty.”

That specific language has evolved since George Washington began awarding a Badge of Military Merit in 1782. You may have recently seen the HBO series The Pacific. I’m fascinated by the events of that dreadful theater and the sacrifices of so many. I often wonder who in our time is continuing this proud legacy of heroism. Who will be portrayed in movies about Iraq and the War on Terrorism decades from now?

Consider what these modern heroes have done and how their actions powerfully match the meaning of the Medal of Honor description.