Memorial Day

This Memorial Day I couldn't help but think about the two local boys we lost in Afghanastan last year. Watching two military processions with the soldiers' families, veterans and friends go through this little town this year left my heart heavy. They were each experiences that I'll never, ever forget and names that will be remembered here forever.

I saw a different side of small town life through each of those weeks. A side where everything turned red, white and blue with American flags placed every where one could go. I saw people respect the fallen and their families up- close and personal. Even if you didn't know one of these guys, you knew their best friend, their cousin or someone else who did. For each of these processions people lined the streets. There were more patriotic t-shirts than you could imagine and a somber silence that just came with respect and gratitude. One of the images that stands out in my mind is of little league teams standing with poster board signs that said "Thank you" in seven year-old handwriting. I also saw grandmothers crying from the backseat of black suburbans, heard taps played and witnessed people beaming with pride because of the sacrifice of one of our own local heros.

This Memorial Day I also think of friends who are holding down the fort while their husbands are away, of families who have been there and sacrificed a lot so their loved one could serve us and our country.

I also pray- I pray for those serving and those that have served. I pray for bravery, peace and protection, for those there and those that are home, and that God will keep installing in citizens' hearts the desire to serve.

And I am thankful, because no matter how bad people sometimes say things are here, we still live in the land of the free and the home of the brave.

Looking back on where I live and our boys from towns like mine, I am so proud. I've heard it said that more of our service men and women are from rural areas than urban, and I believe it. Down here we see a part of America that touches your heart and I am so grateful that some hearts haven't just been touched but have been called.