Margraten: Where 8,301 American Heroes Lie

I am incredibly blessed to live in this region of Europe this year. We have seen the 65th anniversaries of major World War II events commemorated, and we live right in the midst of it all.

Recently, the liberation of the Netherlands was celebrated. And, for this Memorial Day weekend, we decided to go to Margraten, where the Netherlands American Cemetery and Memorial is located, to plant flags and visit the graves of American warriors who sacrificed all for freedom.

It gives me chills to see a place like this. First of all, I still can't wrap my mind around the heritage Margraten represents for us. It is because of the battles represented there that we are even stationed in this area. Geilenkirchen, which hosts the NATO base at which we are stationed, was the site of a major 1944 battle. And, some of the men who lost their lives in that battle were buried right in front of me.



Margraten is tranquil and beautiful, just as it should be. The grounds are flawless, flowers blooming everwhere, monuments tasteful and simple, and the rows of crosses and stars are powerful and moving. Walking through to take note of when these men died and where they came from, I saw several pairs of brothers buried side by side.



An American family approached us and started talking to us. We told them that we were stationed in the area and asked if they were visiting. The man told us that they were there because his father is buried in the cemetery. He died in battle, and his son grew up without a father. Powerful. This man was at Margraten for the ceremonies this weekend - the Dutch Queen Beatrix will preside over them at the cemetery tomorrow.

There was a whole group of families walking around this morning wearing badges with their loved ones' pictures on them. Our new friends had been to visit his father's grave four times, and he felt like it was important to be here this year. He loves that his mother chose to keep his father buried here with his buddies.

He told us about the great relationship he has with the Dutch family that adopted his father's grave. It is really admirable to see what the Dutch people do for those buried at Margraten. All graves are adopted by the Dutch - there is a waiting list. However, families tend to solemnly pass down the responsibility of caring for the graves to their own family members.

A Dutch man also started talking to me later on about the grave he adopted. He excitedly told me the soldier's name, and how much it means to him to be able to care for his plot. His eyes misted, and he looked up and over the cemetery. He said, "These people did much for us." The Dutch really appreciate the sacrifices, and generations of them were out today placing flowers on the markers. I'm thankful for these people and the way they passionately care for our fallen.



It was a fitting way to mark Memorial Day. I will absolutely return, hopefully in the near future.

Monschau

We went to the most charming little German town today while we have some gorgeous weather. I'm so glad that the sun is out, finally. Chris has a three-day weekend in honor of the Pentecost, so we decided to take a day of leisure and be tourists.

Monschau is located in the Eifel region, near Aachen, close to the borders of Belgium and the Netherlands. It's about an hour from us. To get there, you drive through some somewhat hilly farmland, and then all of a sudden you realize you are at the top of a steep, winding, mountainous road!

The town has your quintessential castle at the top of the mountain/hill (your view of what this is depends on where you're from), a babbling river, and so many fun restaurants and shops, making this a town to which I will bring visitors for the duration of our living in this region.



This is definitely a great place to go hiking, and we will do that soon. But, today I wanted to explore the town and we spent lots of time wandering.

We chose to sit outside at a wonderful restaurant right on the river and outside a lovely church with bells that tolled for what seemed ages at noon. The sound of bells tolling is one of my favorite things about Europe, and something I will desperately miss when we move home.

For lunch I had the best schnitzel that I have had since we moved here. It did not seem greasy and was accompanied by a sauce made from the honey-mustard that this town makes well. We also tried some white asparagus, as that is in season now. I had another seasonal favorite - fresh strawberries. Incredible food today.

The shopping was great today, too. There were all kinds of wine stores, antique shops, and - wait for it - a Christmas store!! Of course, I went in. This store was perfect, and the prices were even good! I bought a few things. For those of you rolling your eyes at me right now, yes, I realize I have a problem involving shopping and Christmas.

I also bought some of the town mustard, and Chris, naturally, bought some wine. There was an intriguing store that sold a lot of Czech crystal. I'm not entirely sure why. But, I will keep that in mind in case I ever need something, and can't get to Prague.

We had such a fantastic day in Monschau and can't wait to return.

Feature - Beware of mischief on German Labor Day

When we returned from our trip to the United States, we got serious about getting our flower pots in order. We went to the garden shop, picked out all our plants, and then noticed that our beautiful printed tin window boxes from Italy were missing. Chris swears that he left them on our front porch. And, we had a mysterious baseball sitting on the back porch. Coincidence? Read the following:Feature - Beware of mischief on German Labor Day

I think we know what happened now.

Alles Gute zum Muttertag

This is my first Mother's Day since having Jackson, and it has been a delightful one. I am very grateful for my little boy (although, as I write this he just crawled over and broke a Delftware tray that I have).

After church today we opted to stay in our village to enjoy a local parade and celebration for Muttertag. We walked up to the church, and started talking to a man decked out in his finest German outfit for the occasion. He told us that everything was in honor of Mother's Day - but, that the event was being held to decide the new "king" (mayor) of our village.




After the parade made its way around the village, everyone headed to a field where there was a shooting contest - to decide who the new mayor would be. Seriously.

I am one of those people who becomes very involved in different organizations wherever I live. And, many of these organizations arrive at the same crossroads year in and year out - who the heck is going to take over the various leadership positions because nobody wants to take them? I now have a solution. Everyone takes a turn at the gun to shoot at the target. Whoever gets the best score assumes the presidency! Incredible.



As is typical at any German fest, the drink tent was right near the entrance. To be a good sport, I decided that Chris and I should both drink a beer, as neither of us had to drive. I walked up to the bar, and ordered from the list. I totally ruined it, though, and accidentally ordered us some very unmanly wine coolers instead of the beer I promised. Chris wanted to die from embarrassment, as it appeared that drinking a wine cooler in Germany is just as uncool as drinking one in the United States.



We had a really wonderful time meeting some of the village neighbors, including an American and a Canadian couple who were lots of fun. And, I learned that our village has been around since 1583. Pretty amazing!

Overwhelmed

It has taken a few days, but we are starting to get back into our routine in Germany. We spent a blissful couple of weeks touring our old stomping grounds in the USA.

I think the one word I continue to use each and every time I return to the States is "overwhelmed". I believe that I become more so with every visit. It's the endless number of TV channels from which to choose; the ridiculous stream of stores to shop in (and the number of items they have to buy); the countless number of restaurants we wanted to visit; the enormous cars whizzing by us on the freeway (in the right lane talking on cellphones); the limitless times to visit Starbucks and Barnes & Noble; the ability to do anything, buy anything, see anything you want at any time you want to do so. It's just too much.

When I'm overseas I miss all the choices, but I have to say it gives me anxiety to be able to have anything I want when I want it. I mean, there are definitely things I regret not having here in Germany. Just today, I went to the Commissary to buy food, and I was in a state of melancholy when I arrived in the baby aisle. When I went to Babies R Us in Texas, I had tears welling in my eyes to see that they had an entire row for pacifiers; more baby food flavors than I had any clue existed (they have green vegetables in Stage 3??); so many baby clothes and odds and ends right at my fingertips, and I had never had the pleasure of walking into a store like this since I had Jackson.

But, here I was back at the Commissary. After dining on fun-flavored organic baby food for weeks, and discovering graham crackers without honey (babies can't eat anything with honey) and other great new snacks, we were relegated to buying the Gerber sweet potatoes and squash once again. Sorry, Jackson. Back to the boring options. Bye-bye Mum-Mums. Auf wiedersehn baby yogurt.

At the end of the day, though, I desperately miss my family and friends, but surprisingly enough, can do without the "so much"ness of America. We don't need all of it, and my simplified life is much happier without all of the stuff.

We had a wonderful time visiting Oklahoma City, OK; Fort Worth, TX; Washington D.C.; and Yorktown, VA. Chris and I celebrated our wedding anniversary with a night out to Reata in Forth Worth; introduced Jack to new family members, including his cousins, Luke and George; and watched Jackson enjoy so many new experiences. I miss my country, but am enjoying the time we have here in Europe.