Memorial Day is a chance for all of us to pause and give thanks to all the service men and women who have given all for the freedoms we enjoy in our country.  A lot of us have a family member or friend who has dedicated their life to serving in some form of military service. They believed in our country enough to want to help protect the rights and freedoms of its citizens.

The origination of Memorial Day began as Decoration Day after the American Civil War when an organization of Union veterans established it as a time for the nation to decorate the graves of the Union war dead with flowers.  Fortunately, the competing holiday traditions of the Union and the Confederate were merged and Memorial Day now honors all Americans who died while in military service.

There are many traditions from visiting cemeteries and memorials to picnics and family reunions centered around this holiday.  In the national cemeteries volunteers place an American flag on each grave.  Today we have items available to us to remember any of our loved ones who have died, even service dogs to our own pets.  Memorial pendants that you can wear, drape over that special framed photo or hang in a shadow box, are wonderful for those precious memories.

There are assorted styles to represent that life now gone. A Tree of Life is significant for that member of your family who was an integral part of the family. The Cross provides the Christian connection.  The Infinity pendant shows that your loved one is present throughout time. Of course, the most popular Forever in my Heart pendant proclaims the heart is where the precious memories will reside forever.  Items are symbols of the one we have lost, but their memory will live on forever in our hearts.

Hope helps us to continue moving forward in difficult situations. Whether it is hope to get out of debt, to land a new job, to lose weight or to begin living again after losing a loved one, we cherish the feeling of hope to propel us through each day.

What if you need hope after you’ve lost a loved one. You still tear up while relating the life and end to others.  “What can I do to keep them close to my heart,” you ask.

Whether you lose a beloved pet or loved one, you want to remember them in such a way as to feel a part of them is still with you.  A popular method is to make a shadow box with mementos that re-create the special feelings that those items bring to life in your heart.  Examples are your mom’s favorite cross stitch pattern, your dad’s monogrammed handkerchief or a fur baby’s collar and toy.

Another way can be with a cremation pendant

which is something you can wear and touch everyday to help fill that void of the one who is gone. They can serve 2 purposes; to hold a small amount of cremation ashes and to have the loved one close to your heart always.

There are many different styles of memorial pendants from which to choose.  I like one that can be a stylish piece of jewelry and I don’t want it so big that I would never wear it.

Memories of loved ones past will keep that hope alive in your heart forever.