Memorial Day celebrates all those who have died while serving in the United States Armed Forces. It is a somber reminder that wars come at a steep cost, the loss of lives. The holiday has another marker, that of the unofficial beginning of summer. Who knew? I thought that our summers began in April or sometime during early May when the mercury jumped past 99 degrees. I could hear the cupboards in the kitchen closing, the stove locking, the oven shutting down.