A day for remembering

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AmVets Post 133 Commander Jim Vines writes the weekly column, "Veterans' Corner." Index

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May 20, 2012

A day for remembering

Anonymous Mineral Wells Index The Mineral Wells Index Sun May 20, 2012, 09:04 AM CDT

By JIM VINES | jim.helpingveterans@gmail.com

This Memorial Day, May 28, one of our most revered holidays, we all pause to reflect upon the principles that have made our nation great. We remember the true cost of freedom and to honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice to protect it.

The brave men and women we honor selflessly gave of themselves to defend a way of life that we so cherish, the right of all people to determine their own futures, free of oppression and fear. It is because of these everyday heroes that we celebrate Memorial Day, commemorating the sacrifice of those upon whose very lives rests the foundation of freedom.

Beginning as a tradition during the Civil War, ladies and schoolchildren in the south regularly decorated with flowers the graves of Confederate soldiers. Although the dates of commemoration varied from region to region, most memorial ceremonies occurred in May. The sheer number of casualties, both Union and Confederate, meant that burial and memorializing the war dead would soon become of national importance at war’s end.

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