Memorial Day 2011

I'm posting after midnight, so technically it's not a Memorial Day post, but it will have to do. Normally I like to take in Red Wing's Memorial Day ceremonies, but I had the chance to golf with some family members this morning in the Twin Cities, so I got up early and made the trek to NE Minneapolis. It was a memorable round that included almost every weather element Minnesota has to offer: Thunder, lightning, rain, hail and high winds, lacking only a little snow and sleet. And that was all by the third hole, where we quickly invented a "local rule" calling for automatic two-putts on greens that were covered with hailstones.

Afterwards, I took some time to make my semi-regular stop at Ft. Snelling, (you can read about last year's visit here) to visit the grave of my Uncle and Aunt, Vernon and Dena Peterson. Vernon, as I've written before, saw plenty of heavy combat in World War II, in the N. Africa and Italy theaters, and was awarded the Purple Heart. We lost him in 2000, and Dena was reunited with him just a few weeks ago. They were wonderful people - funny, smart, devoted to their faith and family - who lived on the shores of Cross Lake in Pine City, MN. For several summers they would take my brother and me into their home for a week so we could take our swimming lessons at a nearby beach, and their home was the site for numerous family gatherings over the years.

I snapped pics of both sides of their headstone, and found it very comforting to think of them spending eternity side by side. God bless them both.