Don’t Forget About Me

When it comes to Memorial Day, there’s one all too common faux pas that even the most patriotic among us may make—and no, it has nothing to do with mismatched socks or talking with your mouth full at the barbecue.

Many Americans mistakenly believe Memorial Day is a celebration of all who’ve served in the military. In fact, a recent survey of 2,000 Americans found that just under half (48%) correctly identified it as a holiday honoring those who died while serving. A full 35% confused it with Veterans Day, which honors all veterans, living and deceased. Even more telling? In another survey, nearly half in it’s appropriate to say “Happy Memorial Day” to a veteran or thank them for their service —an awkward moment waiting to happen.

So, let’s take that faux pas off the picnic table.

A Day of Memory, Not Just of Battle

Yes, Memorial Day honors those who died in combat—from the beaches of Normandy to the sands of Afghanistan. But it’s not only about those who fell in battle. It’s a day to remember all who lost their lives while wearing the uniform—whether in combat, during training, on humanitarian missions, or in service-related accidents.

It also includes those who died by suicide while still serving. For some, the burdens of war and military life were carried silently, their injuries invisible but no less devastating. Their lives were cut short not by enemy fire, but by the weight of what they endured.

Memorial Day honors all of them—those lost to bullets and bombs, and those lost to the battles within.

These Words

Sometimes, poetry says what we can’t—like these words that echo across generations:

“They say, Whether our lives and our deaths were for peace and a new hope or for nothing we cannot say: it is you who must say this.
They say, We leave you our deaths. Give them their meaning.
We were young, they say. We have died. Remember us.”— Archibald MacLeish, The Young Dead Soldiers Do Not Speak

 

“They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.”
— Laurence Binyon, For the Fallen

These aren’t just lines from poems. They are a challenge to us now: to remember—and to give meaning to the lives lost in service to our country.

3 O’clock Wherever You Are

At 3:00 p.m. on Memorial Day, we are asked to pause. No matter where we are—at a parade, a barbecue, or walking quietly alone—we are called to stop and remember.

Because remembrance is not just about flags and flowers. It’s about the people who are missing. The empty chairs. The folded flags. The birthdays and milestones that will never come. For the loved ones left behind, the cost of service never really ends.

That’s why memory must come with meaning—and meaning must come with responsibility. The federal government has a duty not only to honor the fallen, but to care for the families they left behind. Not just with words or medals, but with housing, health care, education, and real support. Grief should never be met with struggle.

So this year, bring the memories front and center. While you take some R&R from work, embrace some other R’s: Reflect. Remember. And help give meaning to the lives behind the day.

Happy reading,

Suzanne Daniels

Enjoy the weekend!

Best,
Suzanne
Suzanne Daniels, Ph.D.
AEPC President
P.O. Box 1416
Birmingham, MI 48012
Office: (248) 792-2187
Email: [email protected]