OT: Images of Memorial Day

On Memorial Day, my town seems like the Sugar Maple of New Jersey. Sugar Maple is the picture perfect New England town in Barbara's fabulous new book CASTING SPELLS; it's so perfect it's not quite real (and you find out why in the book).

Here in Glen Ridge, we have the quintessential small town Memorial Day. First, there's the parade which consists of:

Old cars, police motorcycles and ambulances:

A color guard:

The Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, town council, Kiwanis, and Rotary, all strolling along waving, handing out miniature flags and candy. The spectators know all the people marching so there are many friendly greetings called out and answered. The Daisy Scouts get a big round of applause because they're so little and cute and excited to be part of the occasion.

Then there's the centerpiece of the parade (in my eyes and ears anyway): the Glen Ridge High School Marching Band:

Next we have a moving ceremony of remembrance where the Scouts place wreaths in front of our memorials as they read the names of those who died in the wars from World War I on.

Finally, my daughter (no, I'm not a proud mom at all) plays "Taps", possibly the most haunting piece of music ever written. I cry every year but I cried especially hard yesterday because she's a senior and will never do it again. (Okay, so my eyes are even a little wet as I write this.)

Then the whole town is invited to a picnic at our football field where we band parents serve food while the kids run three-legged races or bounce in a moonwalk.

So you see, Barbara, trumpets did blare and marching bands did parade up and down the street when you started knitting again. They just did it a few towns over.

How did everyone else spend their Memorial Day?