Keep in mind the true traditions of Memorial Day
The party is over and the fat lady is about to sing. Make no mistake about it, she is going to have a set of pipes on her the likes of which you’ve never heard. She has been practicing now for the last couple of weekends. That’s right, Memorial Day is around the corner.
That means parking meters, traffic, crowds, digging for quarters and what Americans love best, long lines. Shrug it off now, but by the end of the summer, you won’t even remember your address, and you will be diagnosed with the permanent condition known as having no bladder control, even if you are a woman.
There is a transformation that has to take place if you live here all year round. You’ve got to change your mind-set quickly, from pulling right into a parking place downtown to being in a holding pattern that is showing up at the air traffic control tower in Philadelphia. It never seems like you are ready for the Charge of the Light Brigade.
We know there are so many positive benefits from all the tourists who descend upon the area. Unfortunately, the only transformation in our minds has been a bet on how long you can actually stand it. What are the odds that you are going to make it until July before you have a complete meltdown and your body is no longer capable of producing red blood cells.
It does take some preparation to enter the season. You probably have already noticed that as usual DelDOT is on top of things. They’ve already closed some lanes on Route 1 to do some minor work, funneling vans filled with kids screaming they have to go potty, merging them with cars pulling boats the size of aircraft carriers. Eventually everyone will have to go potty which is why they no longer have ash trays in cars anymore.
Still, it’s always amazing to look up and see crowds back at the boardwalk, lugging chairs and belongings like they are going into a waiting room at the nearest Greyhound Bus station. People spilling onto the sidewalks with T-shirts that say, “Tourist from Hell,” will become a common sight. But that’s not the only thing spilling out in the summer, as the beach cover-up has gone the way of the rotary phone. Rolls of skin, some looking like a bad paving job on an asphalt driveway, will block your view, often even darkening the sunlight to the point that some beachgoers pack up thinking there is an impending storm.
And let’s not forget those get-togethers with family and friends. Soon the aroma of charcoal grills sputtering and burning good prime meat into chards of black rawhide will permeate the air. Wait, that’s just at my house. Not to worry, we always stock up on burn ointment and bandages before firing up that first barbecue of the summer.
And how about that fashion statement for this summer? After one look at what is walking around, I know you are thinking the fashion this year must be I’ve given up on having a lifestyle. I swear I saw a woman on Rehoboth Avenue wearing just a bra as a top. But to clear our minds, let’s remember the real reason we celebrate Memorial Day is not just because it’s a day off from work and the official opening of summer; it’s because it is a time to honor those who have died in our nation’s service. That is the true meaning, and one we should stop and fit into our plans.
Originally conceived as Decoration Day, the holiday that falls on the last Monday in May has many traditions. One of the most visible is the red poppy sale. It was conceived by Moina Michael to honor those who died serving their nation during war. She was inspired by the John McCrae poem “In Flanders Fields.”
In her own poem, “We Shall Keep the Faith,” she wrote,
“We cherish too, the Poppy red
That grows on fields where valor led;
It seems to signal to the skies
That blood of heroes never dies…”
Take a moment to join our real heroes with a pause of silence, a thought, a prayer or a display of your flag.
