National Cemetery

So a while ago my friend shares that they are helping place flags at the National Cemetery for Veteran's Day. I thought it would be a good idea for us to see what that was all about. We have plenty of family that have been in different parts of the military and my cousins son is serving in the Marines right now but I don't think the kids really understand it.

I know I don't. I can't imagine losing a family member or even being home worrying while they protect us. This should be good for everyone to experience.

Right off the bat I was taken by the amount of people and the pride they had in our Country, Pretty cool. 

We stood in the center of the circle and listened to prayers, speeches and songs. More than once I had tears in my eyes. I have said it before but I liked the feeling of being part of a bigger thing. It is easy to get lost in your own little tiny bubble.

Olivia was a typical teenager and explained politely that she regretted coming. I understood but said today was not optional. Ava seemed to listen, hear it and have a deep appreciation for it or at least as much as a 9 year old can. She even shared a hug when she noticed I was teary eyed.

Once they explained the directions so each flag was places properly we were advised to set out and place flags. I was happy to ride a "Grave Locater"  which told me exactly where my Nana Foose was buried. We found out she was buried way out on the outskirts but if we were going to place any flags I really wanted to start there.
We did find section 38 and people had just started placing flags and we hadn't missed our chance so we walked right to her 801.



Ava did the honors. She them came and gave me a hug. She is a sweet girl with a giant heart. She also left all the beautiful colored leaves that she collected along the way while we walked to this area. Her gift to a Nana she has never met.


After that we moved through the rest of that section. Ava read most names and cleared off the leaves or debris saying that they needed respect.
I was surprised at how fast it went, approximately 64,000 flags were placed in about an hour. The nice part about placing in the back corner was we got to walk through these sections to get to our car.
I know it is a sad day for some but I was proud to be a part of it. I hope the kids feel the same.