Staying the Same While Changing

I attended a funeral today for the father of a church member. He was 91, and had served in the Army during WWII like many men his age.

He received military honors at the graveside, including the playing of "Taps" and having his casket covered by an American flag, which was given to his eldest daughter. Of the three soldiers present, I imagine only the bugler might even have been born when the man was still in the service, and that's a stretch. Neither of the two sergeants folding the flag had been.

One, obviously a Native American, was surnamed Kirk. The other, whose family had equally obviously hailed from India, was named Jain.

"Taps" has been played at United States military funerals for a long time. Flags have been presented to the surviving family members for a long time; the man whose service we attended might have seen a number of them although he was never in a combat role in the war. I imagine the Army in which he served looked quite a bit different than the two soldiers presenting his flag.

And yet they folded it just as carefully, and the bugler played just as wholeheartedly, and the words "with the thanks of a grateful nation" were spoken just as sincerely even though the man these soldiers honored had never been known to them nor they to him. Even though his Army and his time of service were for them a part of history they only heard of and read about, he had been a soldier himself, and they showed the same respect as they would have to one of their own comrades had he fallen at their sides.

Traditions connect us to the past. They help those who have gone continue to teach and communicate with those still here. When we listen to their message, we may learn what we handle or confront today has been confronted before. Or maybe we can just express our thanks for those who before us handled and dealt with the things they did, that we might be here to deal with what we face, even if it different. We receive some traditions, and we pass them on or perhaps create our own.

How will we teach those who come after us? It's a question worth some time.