Mr. Lileks gives us a micro--nay a nanobleat for Memorial Day. I won't steal his image, you should follow the link.
But on this day we remember those who climbed over the bar anyway. It would sound fine and noble to say we will never forget, but of course we do; otherwise we wouldn't have to have a day to remind us again. That's natural; can't be helped. Men like my father wouldn't be comfortable with a daily parade of thanks, anyway; like many heroes, he didn't take every opportunity to remind us what he'd done, nor did he want to be viewed exclusively through that prism. He would shake off the word "hero," in fact. He would prefer "sailor." To a certain man of a certain age, that said it all. I was a sailor. And it still says it all. If you're listening.
UPDATE: I don't have a link to the Memorial Day poster, he seems to be having some trouble with archive links. (I wish I had stolen it now.) I'll add a great Lileks quote from today:
If you’re going to have a boundless ego, I recommend boundless insecurity as a chaser. Keeps you motivated.