Happy Memorial Day From Swedish Purgatory

I am celebrating my Memorial Day in the least patriotic way possible.  Looking for patio furniture at IKEA.  I will be wandering around in an endless maze of Swedish furniture, housewares, and meatballs, less than twenty miles from Valley Forge National Historical Park.  Two hundred and thirty nine years ago George Washington and his troops endured an awful winter of frigid temperatures, starvation, and disease, so that today I can spend time wondering if that deck table is really teak.  No matter how much I poke fun at my current predicament, we should value those sacrifices more than anyone can put into words.

Two thousand troops died at Valley Forge.  Over the course of the Revolutionary War close to twenty five thousand American troops died.  In the Civil War, which is the bloodiest war in American history, Union and Confederate losses topped six hundred and sixty four thousand. In World War One, one hundred and sixteen thousand.  In World War Two, four hundred and five thousand.

I just finished rewatching Band Of Brothers.  At the beginning of the series Rod Strohl, an original member of the famed Easy Company, described how three men from his small town committed suicide because they had been designated 4F.  4F was the military term meaning they were medically ineligible for full service.  That statement really stuck with me.  These three men were so devastated they could not serve their country, they took their own lives. With like fervor Americans rushed to enlist to fight in World War II.  Do those kind of people exist anymore?  Men who believe in something bigger than themselves?  I know that they do, I’ve met them.  I just don’t think there are as many of them as there used to be.  Take Brooklyn, New York as an example.  Eleven thousand men from Brooklyn died in the second World War. If we were forced to invade Normandy with guys from today’s Brooklyn, we’d be storming the beaches with a bunch of dudes that had man-buns, tight pants, and ironic t-shirts.  Not exactly confidence inducing.

Speaking of Normandy.  My wife and I were fortunate enough to be able to take a trip to France.  She was there for business, but we added some sightseeing days on to the front end of the trip.  On arrival at Charles De Gaulle, we picked up a rental car, got lost, found our way, got lost again, and eventually arrived at the American cemetery in Colleville-sur-mer.  It was toward the end of the day.  As I wandered the small museum and cemetery grounds, exhaustion combined with the fact that we were on consecrated ground, had me blinking back tears the entire time we were there.  I remember turning to my wife at one point and saying, “These guys actually saved the world.”  It’s heavy.  You can feel it in the air on those beaches.

As cliche as it may be.  Wherever you all are today (barbecues, the beach, asleep on the couch, a small town parade,,,,,,,,,,,,IKEA)  I hope you take the time to remember those who gave their lives for something they believed was bigger than they were.  The ideals that Washington and his men were fighting for.  Now if you’ll excuse me, I have been at IKEA for three hours now and I feel like having a few vegetarian meatballs before I go home and assemble my brand new POANG chair.

A Tribute video I found Youtube.