Memorial Day

Memorial Weekend was pretty relaxing. There is always that nice feeling of knowing that while you are doing absolutely nothing-that's OK cause that's your job at the moment. No work-no obligations, and at least three days of nothing ahead. Hooray for Holidays! And, hooray for our wonderful veterans who we celebrate. I'm very proud of the fact that I have a very long history of family members who have fought in most every battle that America has been in. Thanks to my Mom's years of genealogy, we have compiled quite a list of heroes.

The Memorial Day tradition of decorating graves started with the Civil War, but I'm going to start before that. Abraham France, Jacob Grove, George Zumwalt, a Holland, and an Armstrong all fought for our freedom in the Revolutionary war.

In the Civil war I'm pretty sure my relatives fought Jeff's at some point, and I'm pretty sure we kicked some major butt. Back in the day they were Yankees. Joseph Leffler, Jacob Zumwalt, Gilburn Harvey Robinson, David Allen, William Henry Scott and his brother's Elijah and Lorenzo fought. Most of them were from Iowa, but probably joined up in Illinois.

As Texas battled for it's freedom from Mexico, Andrew Kent fought in the Alamo. I proudly look up his name on the wall there every time we go.

In WWI my Great Great Uncle was gassed in France. He had one of those freaky masks they used, but it still wasn't quite enough and it damaged his lungs. However, he survived that war only to lose a smaller battle to one of the local girls in Iowa. She got him drunk and made him marry her. He wasn't too happy about that. Luis Vadraska was also in the war. Both their names can be found on the memorial in Pocahontas, Iowa.For WWII my Mom's father was too young, and his father was too old. My Dad's Dad however, was the right age and was sent off to fight. He joined the Army instead of the Navy because he didn't know how to swim. Grandpa Vern was on Normandy Beach and in the Battle of the Bulge before he was captured and spent a lot of time as a POW. A few years ago my sister Tiffany was eating breakfast at my Grandma's when she noticed the spoon had a swatiska. "What's this from?" she asked. Grandma replied very casually, "Oh, your Grandpa pulled it off some dead german soldier in the war." Tiffany almost died as she choked on her cereal and then had Grandma put it somewhere for safekeeping.

The journal Grandpa kept in prison

My Great Uncle Howard fought in the Korean war.

My Uncle John fought in the Vietnam and earned a Purple Heart. My Dad was close to being drafted, but instead wound up working in a bomb factory to help support the war effort.

Uncle Chris, Uncle Robert, and Aunt Sue all served in the Army. Uncle Joel Jon served in the Navy. I'm very proud of my family for all the service they have provided to our country, it's not an easy job and I'm so glad that they chose to do it. I hope everyone had the chance to remember someone for Memorial Day!