Visited my first national cemetery today....

[fudge stripe cookays]

Am in Minneapolis for a few days, and made a run out to Fort Snelling to find 4 of the guys I'm writing about.

What a powerful experience. It boggles the mind how many veterans there are there. And how many of the cemeteries exist all over the country. How many people have fought in so many wars, and how their honorable sacrifice is being used as political fodder now. How badly things have changed for them in the last 50 years or so.

They had a funeral while I was out there, and I heard the rifle salutes. It has really shaken me. If you haven't been to one, I encourage you to go.

Note: look at the backs of the stones if you go. The grave numbers are on the backs. There is a machine in the little portable building at Fort Snelling that lets you enter a last name, select the name from a list, and then it prints out a little map. You can use it to locate the section, then use the numbers on the back of the stones to find the person.

[yellerpup]

1. Thanks.

It is so sad to realize just how many veterans suffered and died in wars for this nation. I appreciate the tip about how to use the map-making machine.