Editor's note: “The Spoken Word” is shared by Lloyd Newell each Sunday during the weekly Mormon Tabernacle Choir broadcast. This will be given May 27, 2018.
Every year on Memorial Day, a young woman visits the small community cemetery in her hometown. She is often drawn to four gravestones standing side by side. They mark the resting places of Clyde, LeRoy, Rolon and Rulon Borgstrom. She never knew them, but she knows their story. Everyone in the small town of Tremonton, Utah, knows their story.
In 1944, the Borgstrom family sent five sons to war. And in less than six months, four of the five boys had perished. Clyde was killed in an accident while clearing an airstrip. LeRoy was shot caring for a wounded comrade in Italy. Rolon died in Germany after a bombing raid. His twin brother, Rulon, died in France. When President Franklin D. Roosevelt heard of these four tragedies all striking the same family, he ordered the military to send the fifth brother, Boyd, home from his assignment in the Pacific. Boyd did not want to leave, but he finally relented and came home.
When the bodies of the deceased brothers were laid to rest in that small cemetery, the whole community came together to mourn the Borgstrom family’s incredible loss.
Many years later, during one of her annual visits to the cemetery, the young woman met the wife of the surviving brother. She asked her, “How did the mother of the Borgstrom boys cope with such a loss?” The wife responded, “She turned to heaven.” In worship and prayer she found comfort and strength.
Of course, heavenly thoughts don’t remove us from life’s realities. But they do provide perspective. They help us remember and reflect. It’s good for the soul to pause and give thanks for the lives of those who have given so much. Would we have hope and freedom without them? Would we have a chance of peace and prosperity without the brave men and women who protect us still today?
Memorial Day is a day to decorate graves and remember those who went before us — especially those who died serving our country. We honor their valiant service and hold sacred their sacrifice. Each of them deserves to be remembered. Let us never forget.
Tuning in …
The “Music and the Spoken Word” broadcast is available on KSL-TV, KSL Radio 1160 AM/102.7 FM, ksl.com, KSL X-stream, BYU-TV, BYU Radio, BYU-TV International, CBS Radio Network, Dish Network, DirecTV, SiriusXM Radio (Channel 143), mormontabernaclechoir.org and youtube.com/mormontabchoir. The program is aired live on Sundays at 9:30 a.m. MDT on many of these outlets. Look up broadcast information by state and city at musicandthespokenword.org/schedules.