Sacred reverence came upon me in hushed whispers when years ago I visited Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia.
Headstones of honor placed with care began in May 1864 with Civil War soldiers. I was impressed with how the planning was precise, and the headstones created patterns no matter which direction I looked.
As of June 9, 2016, Arlington contained the remains of more than 400,000 people from the United States and 11 other countries – about the population of Minnesota.
Each headstone represents a life someone gave because they believed in an idea so great that they were willing to give the ultimate sacrifice – their lives.
In recognition of those who believed in the idea of freedom, here's approximately how many Americans have given their lives for their country's freedom starting from the beginning of the United States until present time.
If you're from a country other than the U.S.A., you have compatriots who have given their lives for you to be free, too.
Here are statistics from www.awesomestories.com.
- American Revolution: 4,435 deaths; 6,188 wounded
- War of 1812: 2,260 deaths; 4,505 wounded
- Mexican War: 13,283 Deaths; 4,152 wounded
- U.S. Civil War: 620,000 deaths; 476,000 wounded; 400,000 captured or missing
- Spanish-American War: 2,446 deaths; 1,662 wounded
- World War I: 116,516 deaths; 204,002 wounded
- World War II: 405,399 deaths; 671,846 wounded
- Korean War: 36,574 deaths; 103,284 wounded
- Vietnam War: 58,209 deaths; 153,303 wounded
- Persian Gulf War (1990-91): 382 deaths; 467 wounded
- "Global War on Terror," including the Iraq and Afghanistan Wars: +6,800 deaths; more than 970,000 disability claims registered as of March 31, 2014
By Memorial Day, 2015, at least 1,266,304 people had died fighting for America.
Consider this:
- You are not living under dictators like North Korea's Kim Jong Un demanding that people treat him like a god or be executed.
- You are so free that you have a choice to care if others fought for freedom or not.
- You can choose freedom of thought or bondage to old hurts and conditioning.
- You are so free that you have a choice to be a prisoner of your past and be afraid of the future – or live in the now.
- You can create a life of choice or be a victim of limitation.
- You are so free that you can make a decision to change your life for the better and do it.
Get it? You are free to create your life however you choose… to be happy or otherwise.
What life do you choose? Have you considered you have a choice?
You do.
In the United States, we designate Memorial Day to honor those who fought for our ability to be free.
Living your best life honors those who believed so strongly in this ideal that they gave of themselves for your freedom.
This Soulgoals' post was originally published on May 29, 2017.
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