Memorial Day: The long walk of remembrance

Navy veteran and The Paper columnist Tad Elliott was the keynote speaker at Burke County’s Memorial Day ceremony. These are his remarks:

We are not here to talk about ourselves, but rather to talk about those who can no longer speak for themselves.

We remember them not for their quirks, the things they liked and the things they didn’t like, but how in knowing them, we became more like them, and they like us.

We honor them, not for the medals and ribbons they wore, but instead for protecting us from seen and unseen dangers. They said, “I will lay down my life, so that you and your children and grandchildren may live in freedom.”

Without those who sacrificed themselves for us, we wouldn’t be here today.

Freedom is not only precious, there is nothing more precious than freedom.

Ask anyone who has worn the uniform, how much does freedom cost? The look in their eyes will speak louder than words.

How much does freedom cost? According to the Congressional Record Service and the VA, more than 1,300,000 U.S. military personnel have died in wars and conflicts since 1775.

That’s more than 1,300,000 graves bearing the names of those who laid down their lives for us. That is the price of freedom.

To shift the perspective, Arlington National Cemetery contains upwards of 400,000 graves. If all those who died in times of war and military conflict since 1775 were buried in the same cemetery, it would be more than three times the size of our national cemetery at Arlington.

To shift the perspective again, this time to someone who is walking from grave to grave, bending over and reading the names, branch of service and rank aloud in a respectful manner, it would take that person two to three years of continuous devotion to the task for eight hours a day, seven days a week, to complete.

And to again shift the perspective, in so doing, that same person would have walked more than 1,200 miles, the equivalent of walking round-trip from Morganton to New York City, or to Chicago, St. Louis, New Orleans or Orlando, in respectful honor of all who died to secure our freedom over the last 250 years.

And even though they are no longer with us, we are witnesses to their faithful service, knowing that they lived a life filled with purpose. We are called to do the same.

To the mission belongs the glory. We are either helping each other by putting them first, or are they last while we go first?

Any individual can make a difference. History is full of individuals who changed history.

Every day counts. The highest honor we can render to those who died in our military wars and conflicts is to ask not, what can I do for myself, but rather what can I do for others?