I was never a lover of history. In school, history and social studies were second only to math on my "least favorite list." As a teenager, I wanted to live in the present, the future. The past happened and it had no effect on me. The people in the history books were dead - move on.

Through the years, I have slightly begun to appreciate our nation's history by seeing it through our oldest son, who has a passion for it. But still, as a mom, I am focused on the present and our family's future.Recently, when my husband and I visited our nation's capital, we stopped at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and witnessed the ceremonious "Changing of the Guards."As we stood in a large crowd of spectators in complete silence and respect, I found myself weeping uncontrollably.I watched the guards in their crisp uniforms and perfectly polished shoes execute every step with purpose. The sharp sound of each weapon echoed with every deliberate snap of a change in position. Their eyes were fixed and intent, never veering.To these men, these soldiers, their mission was clear. Above everything else, guard the tomb which currently houses three men whose names will probably forever remain unknown.The air that surrounded those 20 minutes was filled with a stoic reverence unlike any I had ever experienced.As I wept in silence, I looked to my right at the faces of the veterans seated in wheelchairs, men who fought and lost so much so that we could stand at that very spot.I glanced to my left at the young mothers and fathers holding the smallest of children. Even the youngest seemed to know that this was a time for silence.While watching every move with intensity, my mind wandered to the nearly 400,000 soldiers whose bodies currently lie in Arlington National Cemetery.I wondered how they would feel if they knew what was happening to the country they gave their lives for. How the freedoms, rights and liberties have become so twisted and skewed.That for their sacrifices we have become a nation of selfies instead of selflessness; TV reality instead of tradition; handouts instead of hard work; gender neutrality instead of genetics and correctness instead of common decency.As we walked away from the tomb and followed the pathway out of the cemetery, we passed by a group of pouty-faced teenagers taking selfies with the tombstones in their background.I was hit with the sobering fact that we as a country need to stop trying to change history to suit our present and our future.We should be using history to teach our children the very foundation for what made us great.I may never have been a fan of social studies or history in school but I realized today that as a mom it has become my job to instill in my children what the brave soldiers in that cemetery truly sacrificed for, not what today's society has bent and reinterpreted their sacrifices to mean.The past happened for a reason and it has a grave effect on all of us, and if we allow it to be in vain, we will allow the agendas of the few to suffocate the rights of the many.As moms, as parents, we need to look at the generation of children we are raising and be strong enough to instill what is right and what is respectful.That taking a moment of silence in front of a veteran's tombstone is the right thing to do, not taking a selfie.By CAROL MILLER |

TNEDITOR@TNONLINE.COM