Typically today would be a post where I would talk about something gaming related, generally Overwatch League related as the season is still going on. That has been switched to tomorrow, because it is Memorial Day. A day where we remember those people and their families who made the ultimate sacrifice. That’s important to remember. We wouldn’t have the freedoms that we have, like getting drunk at some BBQ or swimming around enjoying a day off if it weren’t for those people willing to risk everything for the love of their country.

Women lose their husbands. Husbands lose their wives. Parents lose their children and children lose a parent. A person made the selfless decision to enlist because they want to make the world a safer place. Because they want to make their country a safer place. In what seems like forever, a person gets the notification that they knew was possible and dreaded but hoped they would never get. They have to tell their children. They have to figure out what happens next. They need to figure out how to be okay with the new normal.

For those families, there is a void that can never be replaced as there is with any other death in the family. Memorials can be placed in their honor, but that doesn’t take away the ache of missing their loved one. There may be guilt that you let them join. There may be pride that they fought valiantly. There may be anger, because there was no reason to be in the war to begin with in your mind. There are so many different emotions that it may take years, even decades, to sort through everything.

Today as you enjoy your party, remember that someone died for that. Remember the sacrifice people made and are willing to make for you, even if they never met you. Remember that there are troops currently all over the world who are in danger, but go on anyways because they feel that it is their duty. Remember that there is a family who hasn’t heard anything from their loved ones in a while and are terrified that the notification is coming. Today isn’t about you; it is about those our country lost trying to protect us. It is about their families who are mourning not just this day, but every day. Remember that today is about remembering those brave souls we lost.