Lafayette, You Are There.

His full name was Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette. But no one called him that except maybe the priest on his baptism day. His family called him Gilbert. The boys at school called him Blondinet because he had spiky red hair and pale, freckled skin. When the men in the village saw him, they tipped their hats and called him Marquis. And what did Lafayette call himself? Just Lafayette. That was enough. His father had been killed in a battle in 1759, so there was only one Lafayette.

At least most American students have only heard of what we would call "Lafayette: The American Years" when he proceeded before France formally allied itself with the United States during the Revolutionary War and became a close confidante of General Washington -- that's important; the first time Great Britain tried to negotiate a peace between itself and its then-Thirteen Colonies, Washington turned them down outright because their petition was addressed to "George Washington, Esq." and not "General George Washington". But I digress. Lafyette led several battles and -- in the Scholastic school market version of Jean Fritz's biography Why Not, Lafayette? (ISBN 0439274311, illustrated by Ronald Himler) we find him after the war back in France and upholding some of the same republican ideals he had and assimilated in the United States. Which required him to stand up to the king, then to Napoleon, constantly asking "why not" him, for who would if he didn't?

Don't worry, I've done more that read this Memorial Day weekend, though that was quite an event -- more accurately, series of events -- in itself. Sunday after church (where we're now back on our one Sunday service schedule until Labor Day weekend) we attended a barbecue that we were invited to some weeks ago that doubled (actually, trebled) as a birthday party for the man who was hosting, his daughter, and his boss' daughter! But it started out with an Easter egg hunt where our Sarah and Jeffrey and our host's grandchildren Grace and Emma searched through the yard for plastic eggs with various chocolates and money. And Jeffrey found the egg with the five dollars inside! Our family certainly enjoyed eating and just sitting around for a while -- there were about a dozen of us there -- with no place we had to be, just sitting and not having to be in work mode. (Which I am when I meet our host, but that's another story.) Got Jeffrey and he helped pay for a new pair of shoes ...

... and we nearly got out of Target with the shoes unpaid for yet rung up, but then I had the presence of mind to ask where they were on the receipt, and the cashier thanked me for my honesty. Evidently you're not getting it as much where I live any more ... MONDAY we all woke up and walked over to the casting of the wreath on the waters symbolizing soldiers and sailors lost at sea with Martha's parents who park in our driveway! Loved Jeffrey's salute. Then we headed to breakfast at the local American Legion post and ... it left something to be desired. Don't know whether they didn't anticipate as many people as came or their equipment broke down, but it certainly wasn't the Boy Scout troop's fault that they ran short on pancakes and supplied possibly the darkest sweetest syrup ever. BUT we ate, perhaps not as well as some years, and headed home for a bit before driving to Rosehill Cemetery for the Memorial Day program.

A motorcyclist's group rode out first presenting the colors followed by the regular color guard. And once more during the program technological BLECH reared its ugly head with the microphone fading in and out. Kudos to the commanding officer of Minot Air Force Base who was our keynote speaker who came out on the pavement before us with an attached mike provided by the local news station covering the event! Small thing, but I appreciate small things. Like singing "The Star Spangled Banner" along with the singer when I probably wasn't supposed to. Oh, and I loved Jeffrey's salute. Went to dinner and then got home with the kids and they wanted to cool off by running through our water hose, which I got to handle and have fun with -- even when I got splashed with some of the wet stuff! Added benefit: my kids took a shower without grumbling!

Lafayette, you're still here.

David