Memorial Day weekend for me is both a time of rejoicing and a somber time. Thirty-four years ago, my bride and I strategically picked that Saturday for our wedding, noting that we would always have a three-day weekend around our anniversary to celebrate. Since I was still in law school at Ole Miss, it also timed out right between exams and a summer internship. That’s the joyful side of the holiday - celebrating with my wife.
But Memorial Day weekend is also a somber time, when we pause to remember all the brave men and women who have paid the ultimate price to help ensure our freedoms. As an attorney, I know the cumbersome path to establish those freedoms, often hard-won and hard-fought. I’m grateful that there are citizens who willingly and bravely commit to be our protectors during ever-increasing global challenges.
President Franklin D. Roosevelt said, “Those who have long enjoyed such privileges as we enjoy forget in time that men have died to win them.” Please take a moment this Memorial Day and offer sincere appreciation for our American heroes who lost their lives to keep our country secure and our freedoms intact.
And if you are someone who has lost a military member of your family, I hope you feel the gratitude of many around you. May God bless you all and may God bless our country.