Silver Star medal, Bronze Star medal, Purple Heart medal.

I saw these medals pinned to members of the "Greatest Generation." I attended the ceremony that was held on Memorial Day over at the Ivy Lawn cemetery. The event was impressive as the flags were out, graves were decorated, and salutes were given. The gentleman that was sitting next to me was wearing the Bronze Star and Purple Heart medals. The gentleman directly behind me was wearing a Silver Star ribbon on his cap.

The Purple Heart is received whenever someone is wounded during a armed conflict. The Bronze Star is also received during a armed conflict with most of the medals awarded to prolonged time in a battle setting. The Silver Star is our nations 4th highest medal and it's received for heroic actions that are rendered in a armed conflict.

I didn't ask any of these two gentlemen where or how their medals were received because I thought it wasn't the right setting during the ceremony to ask them. I wear a ribbon on my American Legion cap that denotes service in Operation Desert Shield/ Storm. I rarely get asked about my service experince during that time in our nations history. I guess talking about conflict is something that should approached in the right setting and with the right words.

I hope to tell my stories here and share what my service ribbon means to me and what it represents.