The salutation, "Happy Memorial Day," makes me cringe. The image below is what Memorial Day is about. This is Mountain Home National Cemetery, in Tennessee.
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Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day. The exact origin of the custom of decorating the graves of those who gave all in service to their country is shrouded by the mists of time and folklore. Decoration Day became official when General John Logan, issued General Order No. 11 on 5 May 1868. The first official observance of Decoration Day was 30 May 1868. On that day, flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. Every year until 1971, Memorial Day was observed on May 30. That date was chosen for Decoration Day because flowers would be in bloom all across the country.
In 1971, Congress passed the National Holiday Act of 1971, making Memorial Day part of a three-day weekend. When Memorial Day became just another long weekend with a day off from work, it began to lose its meaning as a day of remembrance and reflection. In 2002, the Veterans of Foreign Wars issued a formal proclamation, which stated in part:
“Changing the date merely to create three-day weekends has undermined the very meaning of the day. No doubt, this has contributed greatly to the general public’s nonchalant observance of Memorial Day.”Beginning in 1999, Senator Dan Inouye introduced a bill to change the date back to the original date of May 30, no matter what day of the week it falls. Parallel bills were introduced in the House of Representatives. Senator Inouye persisted in his effort to get the date changed back until he died. All the bills failed in committee. The mattress sale, beer, and hot dog lobby appears to be too powerful.
More on the meaning of Memorial Day below the swirl. Lots of photos.
