In Honored Glory

There is an American cemetery in Draguignan, France, where the casualties of the southern invasion were interred. We visited the Rhone American Cemetery last spring.

There was a long-stemmed rose propped against a white marble headstone, one of more than 850 in the cemetery. I didn't have the courage to take a picture of it. It seemed too intrusive to photograph someone's grieving tribute to a soldier killed so long ago.

Nous serons insurmontables si nous demeurons unis dans la charite.
We will be invincible if we live united in charity.

The American Battle Monuments Commission, the guardian of all the overseas cemeteries and memorials, has a Facebook page. It is filled with touching tributes, among them posts from people in France and elsewhere who have "adopted" the care of the graves of American servicemen from both World Wars. Some even wish to connect with their families.

So, on this Memorial Day, what will you be thinking of?  Peace, surely. A rose, maybe. Tribute, certainly.