Memorial Day Holiday: a day of Gratitude

Greetings!  Today, I would like to share some thoughts as to what the Memorial Day Holiday means to me.  First, we are so grateful for the countless blessings that we have!  The liberties that we enjoy everyday must not be taken for granted.  For this, I am so grateful!  It is easy at times to forget how and why we have these liberties.  Liberties that allow us to speak freely, to travel freely, to express our opinion freely, to elect officials….you get what I am trying to say.

These liberties for us Americans did not just “happen”.  There was many sacrifices along the way to make sure that our land was truly the “land of liberty”.  This holiday weekend, aside from resting, traveling, cooking out or just “hanging”, take a moment to reflect on the men and women that paid the ultimate price for these freedoms and liberties.  From before the birth of our great nation, many men, women and children sacrificed much to be the pioneers of our great nation.  Once here, they paid the ultimate price to give birth to the United States.  From then on, our nation has been tested.  Tested in many conflicts and wars.  But the resiliency of our tight woven culture and ideals has always prevailed.

Today as we celebrate the start of the Memorial Day weekend, I would like to thank all the brave men and women which have made the enjoyment of our lives possible.  We remember and honor the great sacrifice that many of them paid for our freedom.  “Thank you!”

We also express our sincere gratitude to the extended families of these heroes that prevailed through their hard loss.  Let us celebrate their lives by making a difference in the lives of others.  To that end, if you know a family of a service man or woman  that has served our great country, pay homage and respect in a humble way.  A sincere simple “thank you” is all it takes.

At the same time, there are many Veterans that have served in the past that may be in need of help and/or assistance.  Take time to look behind the scenes and facilitate assistance through private or public assistance programs.  I recently read where a very important benefit available to our Veterans is only utilized 2 to 5 percent of the time.  This benefit is called the Veterans Administration (VA) Aid and Attendance benefit for Veterans that have served our country.  This benefit could offer and facilitate companionship, assistance with activities of daily living, light housekeeping and overall senior care assistance.  I think this is a great option for our Veterans who have done so much for us!  As our Veterans age, this benefit could be a God send!  The www.preferhome.com website has much information about this underutilized benefit.

Have a great Memorial Day weekend and may God bless all our families and may God bless the United States of America!

Until next time……