It wasn't Memorial Day but it definitely was a memorial day in St. Paul. Today was the dedication of the World War II Veterans Memorial at the Capitol grounds. My memory was triggered when bomber planes flew overhead about 2 PM. My instant reaction was to find some kind of shelter. There are few sounds to match a bomber plane flying low. With camera in hand, I hiked to the Capitol to see the unveiling.
Little did I expect to be reduced to tears as I watched. The speeches were moving, but not what impacted me. What I saw was the soldiers, the young and the old, the real and the imagined, the smooth skinned and the wrinkled.
Worst of all was the black POW/MIA flag. It never fails to bring images of POW camps in Viet Nam, the most disputed war and the one which least honored its vets. This comment was overheard between a WWII vet in full regalia and a Viet Nam vet who had flown one of today's bombers. The Viet Nam vet congratulates the older soldier and says, "I'm a Viet Nam vet and we've never gotten anything like this." No, they were spit on and shunned when they came off the planes. No matter what they had given up, what they had seen, what they had done for their country. Viet Nam vets were shamed when they came home. The country they left had changed while they were gone almost as much as they had changed.
In contrast, today the soldiers who have gone before and the ones still living from WW II were honored. I saw stories in the lines on the faces of those who had served. I saw chests full of medals on stooped bodies. I saw memories. I saw pride. It was as it should be. These men deserved this recognition. They deserved to be proud.
As the crowd dispersed and my meander home started, bag pipes were heard. The pipes were played by a lone man walking the grounds. "Amazing Grace, How sweet the sound. That saved a wretch like me . . . . " swept its way through the stragglers and the foreign monks dressed in bright orange on the Capitol steps. The monks were enjoying the freedom we take for granted. The freedom that was bought with a price. Only a bag pipe could bring such a poignant conclusion to a sweetly sorrowful day.
| Click here for my photos of the event. | An invitation to attend the memorial. |
| The legislative press release. | WCCO news coverage. |
| Pictures of the construction | ECM Capitol reporter. |
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