A Memorial

So, it's almost Memorial Day. I know that normally when I think of Memorial Day, family get-togethers and cookouts come to mind. But this Memorial Day, I have stopped for a moment to reflect upon what the day is really about. I found on a website that said Memorial Day, originally called Decoration Day, is a day of remembrance for those who have died in our nation's service. I remember living in DC and walking past the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial for Memorial Day. I went with a friend and we were in awe at all the people that had come to pay homage to their loved ones who had died fighting for our country. The wall that is the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial seemed to stretch forever on this particular day, and I could feel tears rolling down my face, knowing that to this day, no one knows why all those soldiers had to die. We think of the bravery and the sacrifice that they made, but we don't often pause to think how they must've felt as the breathed their last breath. Life is so precious, and I think we are often too quick to put our brave men and women on the front lines.

Memorial Day, for me, is also a time to remember loved ones that have passed away. And on this particular day, I want to tell you about someone who meant a lot to me...that I only met once. Her name was Anise.

I was seven years old and I was in India with my family for my uncle's wedding. My mom had a lot of family still in India at that time, and we went with my grandmother to see her mother and the home where she grew up. There sat my namesake, my great-grandmother. She was blind and had beautiful green eyes and white, white hair. In Urdu (the language spoken in that area), my grandmother told her who I was. Her hands were dark and rough from work and she moved them across my face. "Buhoth piari," she said, meaning "very pretty."

Maybe I didn't realize it at that time, but thinking about it now makes me realize how precious that moment was. Here were 4 generations of my family...all together. It was a powerful moment, and there is a picture of all of us in my parent's house. I often stop to look at it, so grateful that my parents took all of us to that wedding so I could have a glimpse into my heritage.

I will always feel a kinship to her, even thought I met her for only a very brief time. I am so proud to be named after her. I hope to live my life as a living memorial to those, like Anise, were strong Indian women before me.