It’s funny how far removed I can feel from the US sometimes. I had completely forgotten that it’s the Memorial Day holiday. Granted, this was never a big holiday in my book as an adult, even though it is a three-day weekend and that’s always a good thing. But as a kid, Memorial Day was always exciting. Very importantly, it signaled that school was almost out for the summer.
Plus there was the local parade to either march in or watch in the morning. Walking in my Girl Scout uniform made me feel very cool, for instance. The local high school marching bands were always in the parade, along with the Shriners in their mini cars and a cast of local politicians and businessmen. An old man dressed in an Uncle Sam costume and known as Mr. Spoons was always a highlight, funnily enough. Mr. Spoons had a collection of spoons that he would clap together against his body and dance around with. I guess that’s hilarious stuff to an 8-year-old!
Decorating my bike to ride around the neighborhood with the other kids was the other tradition. My brothers and I would attach baseball cards around the spokes of our wheel so as to make a cool thumping sound. And putting some streamers and American flags on the handlebars added to the fun.
With my parents, we would go to the cemetery to place flowers on relative’s graves in the early afternoon. And later in the day, there was always a BBQ, often the first big family picnic of the summer. It was all good stuff. Just thinking about it is almost enough to make me want to decorate my bike…
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