Inspire Me Monday--And For A Good Reason

Happy Memorial Day everyone.  I just want to share with you what Memorial Day means to me.  Being a veteran myself, I feel a special connection to the veterans buried at our national cemeteries.  Here in Little Rock, Arkansas, we have two large national veteran cemeteries here.  I visit one of them regularly because I live about 2 miles from that one.  I also have some family buried there.  Anyway, just take a moment to pray for our soldiers serving currently, those who have served, and those who have passed on either while serving or after serving their time.  Also remember those who work at the cemeteries that keep them looking nice and the ones who spend their time on special days placing the flags on each and every grave in the morning and take the flags off of each and every grave in the evening.

There is a sense of pride that comes over oneself when entering a veteran cemetery on a special holiday.  Seeing the flags lining the drive ways and standing proud on each and every grave is something one cannot put into words.  For a veteran who enters one of these sacred places to remember their fellow soldiers, words cannot describe the honor they feel for the people already buried there.  It is such a serene place to walk around and reflect on the liberties that we have because of the people who are already there.  Walking down by the small pond at the cemetery we have here, you will see all the flags positioned at half-staff at all times remembering the heroes who are gathered inside the gates of the cemetery.  Many of them served not by choice, but out of necessity for the protection of our liberties and simple freedoms we enjoy today.  So, if you ever get the chance to visit one of these great cemeteries, please do.  Say thank you to some of the fallen heroes that are already "home".  I am going to leave you with these beautiful pictures I took of the cemetery today.  I have a lot of them and take some every time I make a visit to the cemetery.   I would also like to list the family members of mine who have served in the military over the years.

 

Alfred Kelly Inmon.  This is my father.  He is still living.  He served in the US Army during the Vietnam War.

Harry A. Black.  This is my uncle.  He served in the Korean War in the US Army.  He passed away in 2006.  He is buried in the Arkansas State Veterans Cemetery.

Robert Eugene Conrad, US Merchant Marines, World War II, he is also buried in the Arkansas State Veterans Cemetery.  The Merchant Marines were a part of the US Coast Guard and those who served in the Merchant Marines were granted full veteran status sometime in the 1980's.  I found out that being a Merchant Marine during WWII was a very dangerous job and many of them were killed.

Entrance to Arkansas State Veterans Cemetery.  This one is located about 2 miles from where I live.

This is the same section where my uncle is buried.  I knelt down to get this picture.  It is very humbling to be able to kneel among these great people who served our country.  The flags on the graves tell a story no one can put into words!!

My great-great-uncle, Howard Crutchfield.  He made a career in the US Navy.  He is still living today.

Robert Eugene, my grandfather, and Richard Leslie Conrad, my great uncle.  Both served in the Merchant Marines during World War II.  They were twins.  Both of them were laid to rest in 2009.

One of my cousins.  Buried in Lone Tree Cemetery in Stuttgart, Arkansas.

Another cousin, buried in Bayou Meto Cemetery near Stuttgart, Arkansas.

Another cousin buried in Almyra Cemetery, Almyra, Arkansas.

Another cousin also buried in Almyra Cemetery.

Another cousin buried in Lone Tree Cemetery.

My great uncle, brother to my grandfather. He is also buried in Almyra Cemetery.

George and John Inmon, brothers,US Army, World War II, both deceased, George is my grandfather

This is my grandfather, George Washington Inmon. He served in World War II in a unit in Germany. I never knew this, but he suffered from PTSD. Although no one knew what it was at the time. He is buried in Almyra Cemetery.

This is my 4th great grandfather.  He is buried in a veterans cemetery near Johnson City, Tennessee.  He was in the Tennessee infantry.  Not sure of the war he may have been in or if he just served in the military.  He died in 1838.  I am very honored to have had someone take this picture for me.  Thank you to that special volunteer!

Yet, another cousin who served this great country.

Charley Thomas Inmon.  This was one of my uncles, father's brother.  I never got a chance to meet him in person, but I did get a 14-page letter written to me by one of his shipmates from the 1950's.  Charley was such a wonderful person and I sure wish I could have had the chance to meet him.  He was killed in a car accident in 1956.  He proudly served in the US Navy in the 1950's during the Korean War.  He served on the USS Coral Sea and the USS Franklin D Roosevelt.

This is my uncle Melvin George Inmon.  He served in the US Naval Reserves for several years.  He is buried in Greenwood Memorial Gardens in Greenville, Mississippi.

This is my husband and I.  Both of us served in the US Army.  I spent 9 years in the Army between active duty and reserves.  My husband spent several years in the Army National Guard as an air traffic controller.  I sure wish he would go back to work doing that!!!  The handsome young man in the middle is our oldest son at his 5th grade graduation.  He is now 14!!

Thank you for stopping by my little corner of the world.  If you remember, please thank a service member or a veteran.  Without us, you would not have the freedoms you have today!!!

~hugs, mel