Jamie and I drove into Sun Valley Saturday evening to a welcome reception by lots of dogs.  Oh, and my Dad and Betty too.  Cody was a good dog and though he looked worried most of the 12 hour drive from Colorado, he seemed really happy to be in Idaho smelling the cool, fresh air in the Sawtooth Mountains.

Today marks a day of remembrance for all of our fallen soldiers.  In honor of Memorial Day, the local American Legion post held a ceremony at the Ketchum Cemetary.  In attendance were some local families, a bugler, a corporal from the Air Force base in McCall, ID and a slew of retired servicemen.  As the speeches were given and the ‘Star Spangled Banner’ was sung, I looked over at my dad sitting next to me and noticed a tear welling up in his sunglasses.  I’m sure he was reliving the times with his old buddy, Cappy, who died during the Vietnam war.  My dad never had to see any action in the war, due to his being stationed in Germany as a tank commander, but I know he feels terrible that his good friend had to go off and fight in Vietnam, never to return alive.  It was a moment of introspection, and witnessing it, I could only think of all the armed forces service men and women that were working hard to keep us free.

At the end of the ceremony, two jets from the Idaho National Guard completed a fly-over, much to the delight of the children and adults in attendance.  In such a serene and beautiful place as Sun Valley, it was really nice to see the community pay their respects to our country’s fallen heros.

Tomorrow night, my dad will be presenting my Grandfather’s film, ‘Topaz’, at the Community Library here in Ketchum, as part of a series titled, ‘Fences’.  More about that later…