Pay your respects this Memorial Day

Cemeteries are quiet, peaceful places.

Rows of grave stones stretch out in orderly lines as if marching to some unseen destination. Some are fresh, still bearing the crisp lines of the engravers who carved them out of the rock and emblazoned them with the names of those who rest there.

Others are more worn. Weather, time and the march of the seasons has broken the once-sharp edges and has stained the stone as if with long shed tears. It is common to see clusters of dates, marking outbreaks of disease, wars or some other great catastrophes.

On bright spring mornings in May, thoughts and eyes turn to the graves marked with those who paid the “last full measure” to their country and died in her defense. In many cemeteries flags placed by volunteers mark these graves. Others, in humble service, have spent time in scraping the moss away and cleaning the grime and dirt that accumulated over the past year.

Some may have fresh flowers, placed by relatives in whose memories they will remain the dewey eyed young boys off to do their duty. Others, who are flanked by loved ones who joined them many decades later, may not have those outward signs of extra care.

But on this day they are remembered. Their sacrifice saluted and honored by those generations removed.

On Memorial Day morning, small crowds gather at these cemeteries. Speeches and poems are read. Roll calls are taken of the dead who cannot answer in this world. Prayers are given. A bugler’s sad tones end the ceremony. Grizzled veterans load into their cars to go to the next cemetery where the service is repeated and repeated again.

In larger communities, the ceremonies take place at monuments to service and sacrifice. In the Medford city park, a life-sized bronze kneeling soldier presents a folded flag to an empty chair. Throughout the year, visitors are encouraged to sit in the chair and experience what it is like to be the spouse or parent presented with the flag at the end of a military burial rite.

The purpose of Memorial Day is to recognize and honor the sacrifice of those who died in the service of the United States. It has long been a time for people to gather and, given its timing and the long-weekend, it is understandable that it became a festive time to celebrate the start of the short and intense summer season.

It is important to remember as each of us fires up a barbecue or sips frosty beverages with friends, swapping jokes and stories, those whose tombstones stand as silent sentinels forever on watch. As the country gets increasingly mired in political gamesmanship and election profiteering, it is good to remember the faces and names of those young men who sacrificed everything in service.

Take time this Memorial Day to attend one of the area services. Take an hour or so from your holiday weekend to honor the memories of the fallen and pay your respects.