Writer’s Rant
May 28, 2024
The word “memorial” means remember. Ironically, what I and many of those of my generation and the one before us, remember this day as “Decoration Day.” It was the day my mother would plant her favorite flower, Geraniums, on the grave sites of those who had served and passed on before us. While they came in various colors including white and pink, her favorite was red. She planted them in the ground and weather permitting, they would flourish for several months in the upstate NY summertime.
You didn’t have to die during military service to be remembered. You simply had to serve to be honored for your service to our country. Both my dad and my mom served during WW2. My dad enlisted and served in the South Pacific as a navy seaman. My mother was a WAVE, stationed at the air base in Pensacola Florida. WAVE stands for: Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service. It was the US Naval Reserve Women’s branch established on July 21, 1942., to replace the men who went on to be sea duty sailors and officers. By the end of 1942, there were 770 WAVES Officers and 3,109 enlisted.
She once told me the story of how she was responsible for servicing airplanes and on one particular day, she failed to do what she was supposed to. The pilot got into a bit of trouble as a result and her punishment was to be taken for a ride in his plane. As she tells it, it was not a fun ride, unless of course you like rapid descents and rolls and flying upside down. A bit disorienting. She never flew in an airplane again. The one long trip I remember her taking was for her father’s funeral in Florida. She went from NY to Florida by train.
Similarly, my dad tells the story of how he was on shore leave and was late in getting back to the Destroyer, which left port without him. I don’t know why he was late and “missed the boat”, but if he hadn’t, I would not be around today to remember and celebrate “Decoration Day.” The Destroyer was sunk by the Japanese with no survivors.
So as we celebrate the traditional start of summer, I wish you all a memorable “Memorial Day”. And for dad and mom, Happy Decoration Day. “Well Done Good and Faithful Servants.”
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