Today at the WE x LSGov Memorial day event
Cody 🧸 inspired me to share this story from when I was a kid where I used to spend Memorial Day with my grandfather.
He wasn’t the loud, storytelling type. He had this old folding chair and a little American flag he’d prop up in the sand, we’d sit near the shoreline just the two of us, listening to the waves and letting the silence speak.
One day, I asked him why we came to that same spot every year. He didn’t look at me, just kept his eyes on the horizon and said,
"Some of the people I cared about never came home. But the sea remembers."
I didn’t fully understand it then. But I do now.
I’ve never served. I’ve never worn a uniform. But I’ve been blessed to know people who have. And I’ve come to learn that Memorial Day isn’t about speeches or hashtags. It’s about space. The space left behind by those who gave everything and the silence they filled with courage.
As a photographer, I talk a lot about creativity and expression. About creating memories that last. But none of that means anything without the freedom to do it. And that freedom came at a cost, a very real cost.
So today, whether you're remembering someone you loved, honoring someone you never met, or just trying to understand the weight of this day… thank you for taking a moment and sitting with that silence.
To those we’ve lost, you are not forgotten.
And to my grandfather, I’m still listening. 🤍
Today at the WE x LSGov Memorial day event [wojtek] inspired me to share this story from when I was a kid where I used to spend Memorial Day with my grandfather.
He wasn’t the loud, storytelling type. He had this old folding chair and a little American flag he’d prop up in the sand, we’d sit near the shoreline just the two of us, listening to the waves and letting the silence speak.
One day, I asked him why we came to that same spot every year. He didn’t look at me, just kept his eyes on the horizon and said,
"Some of the people I cared about never came home. But the sea remembers."
I didn’t fully understand it then. But I do now.
I’ve never served. I’ve never worn a uniform. But I’ve been blessed to know people who have. And I’ve come to learn that Memorial Day isn’t about speeches or hashtags. It’s about space. The space left behind by those who gave everything and the silence they filled with courage.
As a photographer, I talk a lot about creativity and expression. About creating memories that last. But none of that means anything without the freedom to do it. And that freedom came at a cost, a very real cost.
So today, whether you're remembering someone you loved, honoring someone you never met, or just trying to understand the weight of this day… thank you for taking a moment and sitting with that silence.
To those we’ve lost, you are not forgotten.
And to my grandfather, I’m still listening. 🤍
French