“When your children ask you in time to come,

‘What do these stones mean to you?’

then you shall tell them..”

–Joshua 4:6b-7a

As a high school student, I studied French all four years. There was more than one teacher of that foreign language at Hardaway High, but Mr. Robinson was always my instructor. Thus, he taught me about conjugating verbs and formal vs. informal pronouns, key phrases and more. I still remember some of those lessons, but the most enduring memories of my years with Mr. Robinson has nothing to do with the language. 

During my freshman year I came to class one December morning.  After the group had quieted down, Mr. Robinson stood and with a somber look asked if any of us knew the significance of the day. I don’t recall that anyone did and thus with a deep sigh he began to talk about the events of Pearl Harbor some 31 years before and its impact upon him and our country.

That wasn’t a one-time event, as during my sophomore year it happened again. Thus, by the time I was in French III and IV it was widely known that we didn’t have to complete assignments due on that day. Even if December 7 fell on a Sunday, someone in class would raise their hand at the start of class and say “Wasn’t yesterday Pearl Harbor Day, Mr. Robinson?” We then put down our pencils and let him talk. I would like to say the question was due to our being genuinely interested in hearing his remembrances, but truth be told it had become a surefire way for us to obtain a free hour of no notes. I feel badly about that ploy now as he was trying to make sure we understood the importance of a key event in the past. 

As a nation, we are in the midst of the Memorial Day Weekend.  While it is often viewed as the unofficial start to summer, its primary purpose is to honor those who have died in service to our country. A time to reflect on the sacrifice made by American soldiers and their families. For those of us who have lived through previous conflicts, the memories come naturally. I have vivid memories, for instance, of living near Fort Benning during the Vietnam War and remembering the challenges of that conflict. Yet for the younger generations of today, it’s a time to tell them of the meaning so that they understand.  The Biblical verse above speaks about such a task on the last Monday of May and other occasions, too.

To understand its meaning, it’s helpful to know that a dramatic crossing had just occurred. In echoes of the day their ancestors passed through the Red Sea escaping Egyptian captivity, so does a later generation of Israelites walk through the bed of another displaced body of water, the Jordan River. It served as a barrier to the land God had promised to them and just before our verse, the priests set out toward it carrying the Ark of the Covenant. When their feet touch the water, the river parts and all the people pass through to the other side. 

God then instructs Joshua to identify one man from each of the tribes and have them take a large stone from the river bed and form an enduring reminder on the riverbank of what had occurred. Joshua makes his selection, yet before the group sets out he helps them anticipate a future conversation. “When your children ask in time to come, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’ then you shall tell them that the waters were cut off in front of the ark of the covenant of the Lord…So these stones shall be to the Israelites a memorial forever.”  

Joshua imagines a day when future generations will not know of what happened on that historic day. So Joshua prepares those men for conversations to come when they will tell of that significant event seen with their own eyes. In so doing he reveals how we—fathers and mothers, grandparents and teachers—can faithfully respond to questions today about Memorial Day from the younger generation.        

Notice the question is not “What do these stones mean?” Rather it is “what do these stones mean to you?”   He even gives them an answer as Joshua says, “You shall tell them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off in the front of the ark of the covenant of the Lord.” Those words offer a technical response that does recall the event, but it leaves out the personal.  It would be akin to a child asking a veteran about the day and she points to a some courthouse memorial and reply “It means we won a war.”  While the answer would be correct, it omits any personal significance.

Thus, on this day or the coming ones, I encourage you to recall and share with a young person what comes to mind for you about this time of remembrance. Perhaps telling the story of a parent or aunt,  grandparent or child who did not come back from a previous war. You might share a memory of what it was like to live during the days of the military draft or point to a buddy’s name engraved on a large slab of marble and how you still miss him.  Or the account could be something entirely different.

The key is to share what the day means to you, beginning a conversation about the sacrifices others made for us.  Who knows? It might even lead to a faith conversation, too!

 O beautiful for patriot dreams, that sees beyond the years, thine alabaster cities gleam, undimmed by human tears.  America! America! May God thy gold refine ‘ till all success be nobleness, and every gain divine. Amen.