Intention in Commemoration

 Intention is everything. Being straightforward in what you are thinking and executing that to your precise vision. Memorials have that effect. Memorials have always been meaningful to the public and hold deep value to our history and culture. It is a way to honor those who have made the history that we look back on. Monuments/Memorials give us a chance to mourn and pay our respects. By placing intention on every aspect of these memorials it gives these monuments a more intricate meaning through the way we can perceive it. I recently learned that the Vietnam Veteran Memorial symbolizes a cut into the earth that will always be there but will slowly heal and look to the future. The location of this monument is another component of the memorial that demonstrates significant intention. The Vietnam Veteran Memorial is situated between the Lincoln Memorial, which commemorates the past, and the Washington Monument, which looks forward. By placing the memorial between two monuments with opposing meanings, the idea is conveyed that this is in the present, and all three memorials belong together. The Judisches Museum in Berlin is another Memorial of immense meaning. One feature of the museum is that you must walk through it on stone faces that symbolize the Jews who were victims of the Holocaust, with each face having a name inscribed into it. Walking all over them makes one stop and realize how horrific this tragedy was, even more so than we can imagine. The intention that comes from monuments and memorials gives many unique perspectives especially when it is to commemorate our past.