I remember my grandmother telling me stories of how loyal our family was to the military. Case in point, I was born into a very military patriotic family. Most of the males in my family served our country. There is not a war where at least one of them served their country. As a child growing up, I remember my grandfather stating he lived by the code; God, Country and Family. Recently, I discovered I had at least 80 family members interred in this grave yard. It is difficult for me to wrap my head around that simple fact. The entire cemetery is the total sum of a regular size backyard in this Manayunk neighborhood. Today, I kept with tradition and visited the cemetery. As you can see in the above photograph, the flags fly proudly. To all who have served and are still serving, I applaud you because without your sacrifice, we who live in this country would not have the taste of freedom, we often take for granted. After I visited the cemetery, I took notice of a sign outside of Bethany German Lutheran Church which is located up the street from the graveyard. The sign said, "every one is welcome to worship". Since the doors were open, I walked inside and attended the 10am service. I sat in the same church my ancestors once worship. What a serene feeling.
