What were the chances of John Adams and Thomas Jefferson dying on the same day . . . the 4th of July . . . the birth of the nation they labored to bring life to? What are the chances that President Reagan, who brought freedom out of tyranny, would die on the same weekend as the anniversary of the liberation of Europe and the American involvement in that liberation.

On one hand it is unfortunate because it is very rare that the world is reminded of the greatness of America, her sacrifices for freedom and the liberation from oppression. So to have two in one weekend almost seems like putting an extra quarter in the parking meter by accident, thinking you will get another 15 minutes on a two hour meter.

Boy . . . is she cynical you say. No, just old and used to a system that does anything but honor heroes, laud sacrifice and praise the glorious triumphs of the human spirit to work together to defeat forces that would destroy it.

President Reagan and his memory will live forever for those who knew and loved him. Even for those who didn’t know him, but loved him anyway, they will never be dissuaded by voices that still utter the veiled accusations of not being smart enough. Heh, we all have translated that euphemism. Any republican is dumb to any democrat, period. They can’t understand why anyone would be a republican, therefore, they are dumb. This is what is referred to as . . . enlightened thinking.

But . . . what happened to Reagan? Did he first go to the voter’s registration booth, change from being a lifelong democrat and then have his lobotomy, or was it vice versa? The brain surgeons were doing a record business during Reagan’s 8 years in office. More democrats became republican under Reagan than at any other time in the last century. And why was that?

Reagan, his ideology, and his way of relating to his fellow Americans really was, very simple. Like most Americans, the KISS method works best. Keep it Simple Stupid. We want less government interference in our lives, greater freedoms to pursue our dreams, and less taxes to prevent that from happening. We want to raise our kids with our values, and worship where we please. “Choice” is not a euphemism for killing a baby, it is about freedom from tyranny and oppression. And the most important purpose of government is to protect the citizens from foreign or domestic attacks. Other than that . . . there is not a lot left to do. Oh, did I say “left?” Ok, for them, the government IS your life. You can’t eat, sleep, breath, bath, build, buy, sell, create, destroy or exist without it. It has become the Borg, and resistance is futile.

Reagan saw this, not only in the tyranny of the Soviet Union that spread its form of global expansion around the world, but he saw it in our own government that sought to take more and more of our freedoms daily. He was a true revolutionary and freedom fighter. He envisioned the purest utopia which would be the most minimal of government involvement in our lives, freedom from outside attacks and oppression, and freedom of expression and religion. Pretty much what the founding fathers envisioned for this nation. Perhaps that is why he was perceived by many as a modern day, founding father.

But the most unique aspect of Reagan’s life was what he achieved. Not the resume version of what he achieved, but the spiritual version. Very few people in all of history stick to the created blue print of their destiny and see every detail through to the end. Reagan was a man of destiny who understood it, sought it, relied on it and defied all circumstances and odds to fulfill the specific destiny he was created for. That is what greatness truly is, because there is a natural understanding that a man was born, lived and died for a specific purpose and did everything, perfectly, to fulfill that purpose.

The men who stormed the beaches of Normandy had no idea what was waiting for them. They didn’t know if they would succeed or fail. They didn’t know if their lives would be in vain and forgotten the minute their loves ones stopped mourning. But as they each stepped off those boats, that fateful June day, they walked into their destinies that paved a way of freedom and liberty for people they would never know, who spoke a language they couldn’t understand, and who lived in a land that would bury them.

What, besides the honor of military, would cause people to lay down their lives for the unknown? They had no idea that 60 years later all the presidents of the free world who represent countries that tried to destroy each other, would all come together and honor their memories. They didn’t do it for that. President Reagan didn’t do what he did so that people would write glowing articles about him the day he died. He did it to preserve their rights to write ANYTHING they wanted.

So, it is fateful, and it is fitting that a generation of true heroes should both die, and be honored on the same day. It is right that heroes not be forgotten and young men and women are taught the difference between self-sacrifice and self-absorption, between right and wrong, between moral absolutes and situational ethics that allow nations to slide down that slippery slope of fascism and communism.

These men . . . from President Reagan, to the last man who gave his last breath on the beaches of Normandy, all served with honor, with a purpose and with a specific, God-created destiny and we honor, and bless them all. And we pray, that that fire, that spirit of sacrifice and faith still burns in the hearts of a few brave men and women.

Today, was the passing of an era. The next stage is up to those left standing