I am certain I heard it correctly — “We’re having hot dogs. A Memorial Day barbecue is not complete without hot dogs.”
It was my first Memorial Day barbecue, and I was wondering why I never met the overheated dogs on the guest list. When I listened intently (as good therapy dogs always do), I learned that these canine A-listers, who seem to hang out in grocery stores, had an open invitation to the barbecue. I figured I would find them in the pool if they were so hot, but I was completely perplexed searching for our guests of honor, especially after not finding any overheated pooches in our pools, puddles or fountains.
After the holiday weekend, when my humans went back to work, I decided to surf the web to solve the mystery.
As an aside, I am no longer afraid of hopping on the information highway. At first I didn’t find it that appealing unless the window was down, my head was out and my tongue was flapping in the breeze. And while the real issue was that it required the manual manipulation of rodents, I found our mouse rather cool, happily hanging out on her groovy pad.
I dug deep (figuratively speaking, therapy dogs are taught not to dig) to uncover the meaning behind Memorial Day and this is what I found: Originally called Decoration Day, Memorial Day is a day of remembrance for those who have given their lives in service of our nation. I even found a slideshow of a few distinguished dogs who have dedicated their lives defending our freedom.
After learning this, I was so overcome with a deep sense of pride for our nation’s heroes. I have been called a hero through my work as a therapy dog providing added compassion and comfort to older people in their homes, but I know that my work pales in comparison to the sacrifices of our service men, women and canines. I feel so lucky to live in a place that recognizes how important these people are to our country, and honors their memory each and every year. All I can say is thank you!
And as for hot dogs (which I discovered are a food group humans enjoy in the summer months on various holidays), I guess eating them on Memorial Day is a good way to think of the breed…right?
