When I was growing up, we didn't really have traditions for Memorial Day that I remember. When we lived in Indiana, the ward had a picnic that day and I remember that happening in Wisconsin too. Maybe in Maryland as well. But in Utah, we didn't do much.
Then in May, 1994, my first grandparent died, William Hansen. Scott and I lived in Wisconsin at the time but at that point my parents and siblings started visiting the Provo Cemetery where he was buried. Sometime later, my father discovered that my 2nd great-grandfather was also buried there.
When Scott and I moved to Utah in 1998, we started going to the cemetery too. We would see my grandfather's grave and then go see the other one for Peter Hansen and his wife. Then later, my sister-in-law Alice, my uncle and grandmother were all buried there. So we would visit all those graves and leave flowers.
One of my favorite memories was when we visited the grave for Peter Hansen and Lincoln, age 6 or 7, noticed a stone that said "PM" on it, probably some kind of marker for a water line. But he didn't know that and asked, "Is a clock buried there?" It was a very innocent and very funny question.
After the cemetery, we would go to a local park and have a picnic with relatives and play games. In the last 10 years or so, we have added a hike to the Y to the morning before the cemetery. It's been a fun tradition to have. The great thing about traditions is that you don't have to decide something new to do. You can just do what you have always done. Of course, you can always do something different. Some years we have traveled and haven't been around for the usual traditions. But having the traditions as a back-up plan is also nice.
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