My husband is named for his uncle, his father's brother, who was killed in WW2. There is a beautiful & stark memorial to the citizens of Washington State that gave their lives while defending our country. The Garden of Remembrance is a half-acre, L-shaped garden along the sides of Benaroya Hall (home of the Seattle Symphony). Memorial walls of granite, lined by slender reflecting pools, are oriented so that the names face the western sun. In addition to the wall, a poem honors veterans who died in World War I; a reflecting pool honors those missing in action; & a fountain honors those who died in peacetime service. The memorial was designed by Robert Murase, a noted landscape architect. The Garden was dedicated on July 4, 1998.
Not long after the memorial was completed, the Husband was walking in front Benaroya Hall & glanced up & immediately (not knowing that it even existed) saw his own name engraved with the date of his death in England in 1944. He claims that his eyes went directly to it, although the memorial had thousands of names. The Husband said it was a Twilight Zone Moment.
The Husband served in the US Army during the Viet Nam War Era (1971-77). I feel blessed that he is with me today & not a name on a War Memorial.
I am glad for you as well.
ReplyDeleteMy great grandfather and his brother on my Mums side and my great grandfather and 2 great uncles on my dads side all fought in the great and some perished fighting in France. I found their graves a few years ago and we are hoping to visit there soon. We remember the fallen on November 11th here in the UK :-)
ReplyDeletePlease thank your husband for his service to this country for me. My father served in WWII, Korea and Vietnam during his tenures in the Navy and Marines and he's probably the toughest octogenarian I know.
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