Memorial Day

"Courage is not the absence of fear, but the judgement that something else is more important than fear. The brave may not live forever, but the cautious do not live at all. " (Meg Cabot)

I learned a lot of things when my sister had children. I learned what it meant to love someone more than yourself and to want the world for someone. I know it's not the same as a mother's love, but an aunt's love can be pretty crazy too :)

Those babies have changed how I see the world. I cannot imagine the pain of the mothers who buried their young sons here during the Civil War. I couldn't ever stand at the grave of one of my nieces or nephews. It would probably kill me.

I don't know how they did it.

I dedicate my memorial day not just to the soldiers who gave that last full measure of devotion, but to their devastated mothers (and aunts), who endured the pain of their loss for the rest of their lives. Those women were braver than I could ever be.

Lolee