So I don’t know about you guys, but until about 2-3 days ago I didn’t know exactly what Memorial Day was. Well, I did know that it was a holiday that we celebrate every year, BUT I didn’t know what it truly meant to the United States and its citizens and myself.

Memorial Day began as Decoration Day. Decoration Day was created a few years after the end of the Civil War by General John A. Logan. He wanted to create a day that would honor those who died fighting for their country. Our country.

Decoration Day was originally celebrated on May 30. But in 1971 it started to be celebrated on May 29, to give veterans a three-day weekend break. This was also when it was officially recognized by the government and the nation. And changed from Decoration Day to Memorial Day.

After simply googling the holiday I found out that this holiday is so much more than what I thought it was. I knew it was a day that recognized the military, but I did not how important it was. This day makes us remember those who are gone. It's not hard for the loved ones of the fallen to remember them. All it takes is a smell or a picture and that person rushes back into their mind. But for those of us who didn’t know them, it's obviously much harder. We don’t know what they did for our country, what they sacrificed. We don’t know who they were, what they liked and disliked, what they believed in, we don’t know who they left behind. But this day reminds us to think about them. To visit their graves. To pray for their families and their grieving. To just think about them for a while, and the gravity and impact of their sacrificial actions.

This day also reminds us what our country is made of.

Our country is made of men and women who sacrifice days, months and years away from their families, in uncomfortable places. Our country is made of men and women who choose to stand watch on their troops camp, at the cost of being able to stand and watch their children play soccer. Our country is made of people who are OK with sleeping on the ground with one blanket, because they know they have a job to do. Our country is made up of people who deserve much more than one day to be honored.

I hope in reading this article you learned what Memorial Day really is. And I hope it reminded you what our country is built on.

So, go and have an awesome Memorial Day weekend! According to History.com every year at 3 p.m. an official moment of honor and commemoration of the fallen occurs. I encourage you to take part in this, as I am. And to not forget that it's never too late to thank a veteran, active duty person in the military, or their families for their services and sacrifices.

But don’t just thank them. Talk to them, ask them questions, laugh with them, cry with them. You’re making a difference, and you are helping them.