We're in the middle of the first three-day weekend of the summer, although summer is still a few weeks away.
Monday is an elite day: Memorial Day weekend holds a special place in America, signaling the unofficial beginning of the summer – a time for barbecues, campouts, the Indy 500 and the real purpose of the day: Commemorating those who lost their lives in defense of our nation.
While many lament the loss of focus on that part of the holiday, there still are many who visit cemeteries – military and otherwise – to honor those who made the ultimate sacrifice. So it's not totally forgotten.
Memorial Day is the best of the minor American holidays – those less flashy than Christmas, New Year's Day, Easter and Thanksgiving in our national consciousness.
Don't believe me? Check out my official rankings of the seven minor holidays (like the Seven Dwarfs and the Seven Deadly Sins. And the Magnificent Seven). These are the holidays which are holidays for some and exclude such days as Arbor Day and national cupcake day.
7. Columbus Day. The mid-October holiday lost cachet over the years as Christopher Columbus moved from "the bold pioneer who discovered America" to "the imperialist who brought smallpox and ravaged the natives." But . . . my birthday is on the traditional date of Columbus Day (or "Indigenous Peoples Day"), so I still have a soft spot for it.
6. Presidents Day. Formerly Washington's Birthday (the federal government still calls it that, although most states don't), this is commemorated on the third Monday of February. Washington's birthday is Feb. 22, while Abraham Lincoln's birthday – which used to be a holiday – is Feb. 12. Since it's Presidents Day, I am working my way through the list and am up to Chester Arthur (in 2019), then Grover Cleveland (both 2020 and 2022, since he was elected twice with Benjamin Harrison between his two terms). Presidents Day weekend is most notable for providing the best long snow weekend of the winter.
5. Veteran's Day. This originally commemorated the end of World War I (11-11 at 11:11 a.m., because those nutty Allied negotiators wanted to be clever) is more important in Fairfield than most other places, because of the annual parade and the city's proximity to Travis Air Force Base. The holiday gets extra credit because the purpose remains clear: To honor military veterans.
4. Labor Day. The flip side of Memorial Day, it's the unofficial end of summer. Labor Day is allegedly a celebration of the U.S. labor movement, but I've never lived in a town where that was celebrated. The holiday had more significance when it also preceded the first day of school.
3. Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Now entrenched as a holiday on the third Monday in January (King was born Jan. 15), this was the result of years of effort before it became a federal holiday in 1983. The holiday is new enough that there are still plenty of events to commemorate King's legacy and the Civil Rights movement.
2. Independence Day. No holiday has a more universal celebration – we all use some version of fireworks – and a clearer purpose: It's the date when the Declaration of Independence was announced. The downside is that it's celebrated on July 4, which means it's often not on a weekend (it's a Wednesday this year). That means a tough July 5 if you live somewhere (hello, Fairfield and Suisun City!) where people set off fireworks all night.
1. Memorial Day. As stated earlier, the unofficial start of summer, a day to honor those who lost their lives for our nation and a recognition of the end of the school year.
Enjoy celebrating the best of the minor holidays.
Reach Brad Stanhope at bradstanhope@hotmail.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment