Patriotism is serving and honoring the men and women who served our country. It was 2014 and the parents of the Garrard county school district walked into the cafeteria bringing food in pressure cookers. Donating their time, and effort just as the veterans had done many years before. Intriguingly we migrated into pairs of two to tape the cords down. Our hands quickly became gummy with the black residue of electrical tape, as the smell of stews enveloped us.

We placed tables with black metal legs and light gray plastic tops along the cafeteria windows, with small gaps in between each table. We laid old, red tablecloths on top of the tables, which had begun to fray at the ends. The tables held about 70 pressure cookers of different colors, sizes, and brands.The table cloths crinkled as we slid the cookers to fit more. As I adjusted the cookers I couldn’t help but wonder how many years the school had done this before.

The frigid air of winter steadily permeated its way into the cafeteria through the 5 by 7 foot windows, battling against the cookers, and fogging the edges of the windows in the process. After the veterans arrived I was imbued with a sense of honor and respect for them. I understood why so many participated in Veterans day. I understood the drive, and the patriotic need to participate, because patriotism is serving and honoring the men and women who served your country.