From my earliest recollections, any holiday honoring our servicemen and women has been of great importance. Perhaps it is because right after my parents' wedding, my dad was to board a ship and head across the ocean to fight in World War II for our country! Over the years, I have felt so blessed to have a dad who fought so we could have freedom. He's told many stories -- to us and also from the pulpit and every time I hear them, I am moved again!!

While Memorial Day is in honor of those who have given their lives for our freedom, I also want to honor my dad and those who are still living and have memories etched in their minds forever.

It's interesting what little things change after they have served in a combat arena ... like the fact that my dad will never sit with his back to the door in a restaurant. He wants to go as far back as he can and face the door. Or how he told us that pictures on the walls were "booby-trapped" after the war so that if you straightened the picture frame, a bomb exploded. To this day, I remember it whenever I decorate our home!

I saw the movie, "Saving Private Ryan" and as I watched, I could hear my dad's voice telling his stories as the scenes played out on the screen. So many were just as he had shared ... so today, I honor my dad and not only those who gave their lives and died on the battlefield, but those who came home -- forever changed!!