Thanks for posting, even though it made me cry. My DH graduated from high school and promptly joined the navy. He said it looked cleaner than other branches. He was in CA waiting to ship out when the war ended. His Mother told me she was so thankful, as her other son was already "over there". He is buried at Ft. Sam Houston. I had a cousin who was a spy during WWII. He was also with a group that liberated one of the Jewish camps. He once told me it was so horrible that he blanked the memories out for the rest of his life. When he was getting security clearance, some one went to his aunt's house in Vermont. She was hoarding sugar. When the maid told her it was the FBI, she thought that was what it was about. There has been a member of my family in the military in every war, including this one. My granddaughter went to the middle east in 2006 and my GS is probably over there now. Another proud American

Yes, I think USA Americans seem to forget the real reasons for ALL our holidays. Such a pity to have lost our National traditions and values. Not too many around here even put out flags for the National holidays. When I was a kid, it was called "Decoration Day" because everyone, and I do mean everyone, went to the cemeteries in great numbers to decorate all the graves with FRESH flowers. We went up the canyon and gathered wild fern fronds and wildflowers to lay on our family graves. They didn't last long, but the were pretty for one day. It only took a little sacrifice of time and effort to do that for those who took a lot of effort and sacrificed everything for us. There are beautiful wild flowers out by the cemetery here and I like to pick them and make bouquets for the graves. So many people have no visitors out there so we give everyone flowers. Sometimes they make seeds and the next year I see them growing on the graves. That is really neat. I do put out silk flowers, too, because they last, but I always take bouquets of fresh flowers from my garden too. The VFW delivers flags for us every year to decorate all the war veterans graves. There are veterans from the Civil War, WWI, WWII, Korean, and the Viet Nam out there. Lest we Forget, we decorate their graves and hoist the big flag we got from the State Capitol building to fly over the cemetery. Thanks for viewing and your comment and the LINK, Natalie. ~Annie

Philosophical comment! The 60s and 70s were the "protest years," but most people who were “protesting” never figured out the difference between protesting the war in Viet Nam and protesting the soldiers who were sent to fight that war. What was done to those men, who were drafted and had no choice about going, when they returned home from Viet Nam was, and always will be, an absolute travesty in my mind. It was so very wrong. Fast forward to 2001, and 9-11. I was based in San Fran, was commuting, and had been released on 9-10 in time to get home to Denver. Sleep deprived like I always was when I got home, I went to bed, and woke up in the morning to an incomprehensible sight on TV. I was still trying to figure out if I was watching some warped version of Candid Camera when I watched, live, the United plane fly into the second tower. After 36 hours of watching the reruns of the United plane flying into the second tower I couldn’t deal with it anymore. My vacation started on 9-11 in 2001, I had reservations to fly back east to visit Gettysburg, among other things, and it finally soaked in that that was not going to happen, so I called to cancel all my hotel and car reservations. I threw everything I could think of in the car and headed out to the hills--Montrose, for no good reason at all, but it was out of Denver and away from the “reruns.” On the way out of town I stopped to pick up some red, white, and blue ribbon to wear. But what I’m really getting to is that as I was heading west I almost immediately found people in their cars and trucks flying the American flag out of their windows, and mounted on their vehicles wherever they could. Of all the horrendous ways for it to happen, it seemed to me that there was finally patriotism in this country again, for the first time since the protests of the Viet Nam era. I cried most of the way to Montrose--every time I saw another flag! I lost twelve flying partners that day, and no words can ever excuse or forgive what was done to the returning Viet Nam soldiers, but out of the ashes I saw patriotism restored--finally. I’m olde, and even with all the “problems” it has, I am, and always will be, grateful to have been born in this most amazing country. On a lighter note, when I was still flying, during the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, whenever we had uniformed service men/women we would upgrade them to first class anytime we had empty seats available. This was not company sanctioned, just something we flight attendants did, so it was always done at the very last minute, after the door was closed. On one flight we upgraded four young guys quickly as soon as the door was closed, and one of them asked me if his buddy was going to be able to join him. I asked him “what buddy,” and he pointed out that there was another soldier in coach. We had missed him on the manifest, so I went back to “get him!” The upgrading had to be done quickly because as soon as the door is closed you “push” and need to get ready to do the “demo,” so I found him and told him I was gonna move him to a "different" seat, and to come with me! He had apparently never had this happen to him, and he looked at me like I was nuts, tried to ask what I meant, and just stayed sitting where he was! I didn’t have time to try to explain to him what I was doing (it was clear the other pax around him had figured out what was happening) so I said to him, “don’t ask any questions, just follow orders, get your stuff and come with me!” He said, “yes, ma’am,” and did what I told him to do! I got him up front and had to leave immediately, but I’m sure his “buddy” explained what had just “happened” to him! It was the only time I gave “direct orders” to someone, and it was the funnest “upgrading” I ever did--all the other pax watching what was going on were smiling! (I have an Iraqi coin that was given to me by a (very) young soldier, and it’s one of my Favorite Things!) Margaret, thank you to your husband and brother, and any other Viet Nam vets you know. A thank you that is long, long overdue! Skybird

Irish..here in our cemeteries we aren't allowed to plant flowers or bushes. In all the newer areas we aren't allow to have upright headstones. They all have to be flat to the ground to make mowing easier. All of our flowers have to be removed by a certain date. If not they throw them all away. Some people have been know to go out and take them if people didn't pick them up. And you see them being sold on street corner the next year. One year I made special ones for each person gone in our family. Such as for the brother that died as a baby I cut an old time rattle (ball on each end like weights) and painted it like the old one were painted. Someone stold all of them. I had intended to go back to get them but they were gone before the date of removal.