I think about the very first ones to step up to that wall. Literally, they stepped up to a dry fit stone wall along a road. They hands sweating, guts knotted tight, listening to the sound of the redcoats' drums. They knew it was treason. They knew those professional soldiers were the best armed, the best trained, and the best supported troops in Europe. These men, and boys too, knew they had only limited powder and ball against a military industrial complex that staggered the imagination.
And yet there they stood, shoulder to shoulder. Facing .75 caliber roundballs that weighted 1.6 oz each, often laid in the barrel with 6 large buckshot riding on top....the "buck and ball" load. Some slipped away, some lost their nerve, some wept and yet stood their ground. The British officer stepped out and demanded they lay down their arms in the name of the King. A king that felt it was beneath him to even learn English, his nation's own native tongue, a king that ruled capriciously thru corrupt ministers.
A shot rang out, and to this day it is unknown which side it came from. Many more shots followed. And a grand experiment in self governance was launched.
Memorial Day began when a group of freed slaves gathered to celebrate the Union soldiers in a mass grave. They gathered to honor those that signed that blank check knowing it might get cashed. And it did. We do honor to those that served the greater good when we remember them on this Memorial Day.
