Memorial Day is a day of remembrance for those who died serving for the United States.
Poppies are a symbol of Memorial Day.
Here’s the story according to The Old Farmer’s Almanac:
In war-torn battlefields, the red field poppy (papaver rhoeas) was one of the first plants to grow. Its seeds scattered in the wind and sat dormant in the ground, only germinating when the ground is disturbed—as it was by the very brutal fighting during World War 1.
The practice of wearing of poppies was further inspired by the poem “In Flanders Fields,” written in 1915 by Canadian soldier John McCrae. He saw the poppies in burials around his artillery position in Belgium.
Today, poppies are both the symbol of loss of life as a symbol of recovery and new life, especially in support of those servicemen who were damaged physically or emotionally.
If you are flying your flag today, which is tradition, it should fly at half staff until Noon.