Last updated on May 31st, 2013 at 07:57 pm
For the past 7 years, I have hosted my annual BBQ with friends and family called Porkapalooza. Every year, I have this BBQ on the Sunday before Memorial day, so much of my memorial day weekend is spent preparing, cooking and serving meat. This year I cooked 137 pounds of pork and by the time Memorial day rolled around, I was exhausted. I usually take this day as a recovery day after Porkapalooza, but today I thought I would share a story that I posted to my personal blog last year.
What sparked this story? In reading several other travel blogs this afternoon I noticed a few posts about Memorial day. One of my favorite bloggers, the Wandering Aramaen, posted some of his favorite Memorial day stories, and after seeing his photos I started thinking about sharing some of my photos and memories as well.
At first I thought about posting photos from the many sights I have seen during my trips to Washington, DC. While I find these photos to be well shot and visually appealing, there wasn’t an emotional back story behind them. It turns out that the story I wanted to tell was already written, it just needed to be surfaced.
Here is the story of my Grandfather’s experience in the Pacific in World War 2, the final days before and after the war with Japan ended.
My Grandpa the War Hero
What does this have to do with Travel? Maybe nothing. But I can’t help but think of how different the world is and how easy it is to travel the world without many worries. I have actually been to Japan as a vacation. What my Grandpa went through in Japan was far from a vacation.
After the war, my Grandpa lead a very successful life selling Life Insurance and raising 8 children. While he had the means to travel the world, he did not get much of a chance to travel outside of the United States. While he would like to do so now, trans-oceanic travel isn’t really an option anymore for Grandpa.
And here I am seeing the world, a wanderlust trying to enjoy every experience I possibly can at every moment. I am a product of the world we live in today, and it’s important to remember those who made it possible.
That should be the true meaning of Memorial day for all of us. It’s not just a day off or a trip to a vacation home for a long weekend. It’s about celebrating the lives of those who died (or lived) in the name of freedom.