Musings from Graceland

MAKING MEMORIAL DAY A MEANINGFUL OCCASION

Here are some ways that you and your family can make Memorial Day a true day for remembering those who have sacrificed so much to keep our country free:

• Research the history of Memorial Day. If you're a homeschool family, center some special lessons around this day and its meaning. If you're not a homeschool family, you can still do special learning activities together to ensure that your child knows the true meaning of this important occasion.



• Visit a cemetery and place flowers, flags, or other mementos on graves of veterans who have passed on for their eternal reward.



• Send ecards or homemade cards to veterans, active duty military personnel, widows of veterans, & families of deployed soldiers expressing your gratitude for their sacrifices.



• Play patriotic music.



• Visit a nursing home and sing patriotic songs and/or give the residents small flags or hand-drawn patriotic pictures. Especially try to give special honor to any residents who are veterans or loved ones of deceased soldiers.



• Pray for the families who have lost loved ones due to military service.



• Visit a military war monument. Explain to your children why the monuments are important and give them a brief history lesson associated with the monument.



• Proudly fly your flags and display other Americana.



• Wear red, white, and blue!



• Visit a VA hospital or veteran's home and deliver permissible goodies...homemade treats, hand-drawn cards and pictures, small flags, patriotic balloons. See if your family or a group can perform patriotic songs for the patients.



• Have an impromptu parade down your street with the neighborhood kids' trikes, bikes, wagons, and scooters decorated with small flags and red, white, and blue streamers. A child can even lead the parade while carrying an American flag.



• Read books to your children that feature patriotic messages or stories related to America and its diligence in the fight for freedom.



• At you Memorial Day cookouts, set aside a special time to pray for today's military personnel, families who are still mourning the loss of loved ones due to wars, and for our leaders to have wisdom as they make hard decisions in a difficult time. Allow for some of the children to read or recite patriotic poems or parts of famous speeches. Play patriotic music in the background.



• Watch patriotic movies, online videos (such as at YouTube), and special TV programs.



• Decorate your car with a patriotic theme...even get the washable paint and write messages of support and appreciation on your car windows. Not only is this fun, but its a HUGE blessing to all those military families who will see your vehicle.



• Journal about what freedom means to you and why you're grateful for the sacrifices made by our military. Even young children can dictate their thoughts to you to write down.



• Include a time in your worship service to recognize veterans and the sacrifices made by so many. Have a special time of prayer for our nation and its troops.

Here's hoping that these ideas will not only help your family to make this weekend more meaningful, but as a result,will minister to those who are serving bravely...and those who are bravely going on in life without the presence of a loved one...a loved one who paid the ultimate price.

Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13