memorial day

Memorial Day originated as "Decoration Day," a time to remember both Union and Confederate soldiers who died in the Civil War.  America's post-Civil War legacy of trying to knit itself back together again is checkered.  Sometimes these attempts to remember the struggles of those on both sides became opportunities to paper over serious issues -- the plight of African Americans chief among them. I cannot help but admire the impulse, however, to remember and commemorate without focusing upon the concept of the "enemy."  After all, in the midst of the very real, very serious struggles we have fought throughout human history, few of those fighting on either side are the ones making the decisions -- and that doesn't even begin to account for the thousands upon thousands of noncombatants drawn by circumstance into the annals of war.  I hope for Memorial Days when we can both honor those who have defended our freedoms and remember the true cost of war upon all people.  We pay greatest honor when we work to recover and renew our deepest sense of humanity, day by day, even in the midst of forces that might make this difficult.