Arts & Healing Arts for Military Veterans By Amber Robinson
A creative’s guide to a meaningful Memorial Day As Memorial Day approaches, I know many of us veterans begin to think about those lost. For us, Memorial Day often holds a much deeper meaning than it does for those who have not served. We have all been to our share of military memorials, whether for a friend, someone we know or just one for Memorial Day. Many of us have also had to face death on different levels during deployment. We come to understand that it is simply a part of what we do. As an Army photojournalist I spent three deployments photographing memorials for brave soldiers I did and did not know. On Memorial Day I think about the men and women I photographed during those events. I have photographed a lot of pain over the years. It haunts me at times, as you can imagine. I can only guess what some of you out there think about. This year may be even more difficult as many of us will be in COVID19 isolation. Here are a few creative things you can do to help channel negative (and positive) emotions as well as honor those lost. Write: As I have said in my last column, the action of mindful writing can do wonders for a troubled mind and heart. Write about the ones that you have lost and mourn. If you feel brave, you can write about how they were lost. Writing out traumatic events can help us to face them, thus allowing us to heal. But, it’s also an exercise in healing to write about why they were great, why you miss them. Write out feelings of anger, sadness or despair. Draw/Paint: If you don’t think you can dig up the words to express how you feel, go grab a canvas, a sketch pad or a piece of typing paper and markers and channel how you feel into a Memorial Day masterpiece. That can just be different colors of blue, black and red smears in paint, a drawing of someone lost or a special memorial creation integrating their name and/or your shared unit crest. You make up the rules on how it can be expressed. Choose your medium and just feel it out. 32
WWW.SanDiegoVeteransMagazine.com / MAY 2020
Cook: Memorial Day is usually filled with cookouts and lots of food. Grilling food and tossing back some beers may be the best way for you to remember and honor lost comrades. As I believe, it’s probably what our fallen would want for us to do, and what they’d be doing with us if they were around. You can get creative in a different way here, and whip up an awesome Memorial Day feast to honor them. If they loved burgers with jalapenos, make some. If they loved Red Stripe beer, go get that (wear your mask!). You will be surprised how close you can feel to one lost just by preparing and eating foods you know they loved. All it takes is a little creativity to turn Memorial Day into a time to not only honor those lost but heal from their loss as well. Our fallen would not want for us to struggle or continue to carry the pain of their loss. But, for many of us, it is hard not to. Therefore, if you are struggling, pick up that pen, those markers or grab those jalapenos and Red Stripe and go create something special.
