The Weekend Digest: Memorial Day Edition
From Memorial Day history to some big news of the week, we've got you covered in this special edition Weekend Digest.
"Soldier's Memorial Day"
"When flow’ry Summer is at hand,
And Spring has gemm’d the earth with bloom,
We hither bring, with loving hand,
Bright flow’rs to deck our soldier’s tomb.
Gentle birds above are sweetly singing
O’er the graves of heroes brave and true;
While the sweetest flow’rs we are bringing,
Wreath’d in garlands of red, white and blue.
With snowy hawthorn, clusters white,
Fair violets of heav’nly blue,
And early roses, fresh and bright,
We wreathe the red, and white, and blue."
🗣️ Your Conversation Starters:
🇺🇸 What is Memorial Day? A day for honoring U.S. military personnel who made the ultimate sacrifice,"particularly those who died in battle or as a result of wounds sustained in battle."
🇺🇸 "Decoration Day": The original name of Memorial Day. It was formalized with Commander John A. Logan's "Memorial Day Order" in 1868, designating the day "for the purpose of strewing with flowers or otherwise decorating the graves of comrades who died in defense of their country ..."
🕯 Arlington National Cemetery: The place where fallen men and women of the U.S. Armed Forces will be recognized on Monday for the 157th National Memorial Day Observance.
🇺🇸 Etiquette: Know the right kind to follow during Memorial Day. Here's a list of some do's and don'ts during the day of observation.
🧳 45 million: The number of people hitting the highway or airport this weekend for Memorial Day weekend travel.
🤰🏽 Breaking News: No, literally. This news anchor's water broke just before her morning broadcast, and in "true journalist fashion" she continued reporting. Congrats on the new baby boy, Olivia!
🤖 Robots Rule: Artificial intelligence was found to be more persuasive than a human during a debate. Kind of not surprising for those of us who use ChatGPT on the reg. 👀 Try it for meal planning some time.
📺 "Sesame Street" Saved: After losing some funding and not being renewed for streaming by another streaming service, Netflix swooped in to save the day for the children's educational show. And you'll still have access to the show for free.
📃 Passed: Multitrillion-dollar legislation involving tax breaks, Medicaid cuts and additional funding for defense and border security passed in the House. Changes to the bill are expected in the Senate. Yahoo Finance has a good reader on the bill and what it all means.
📹 Digital Time Capsule: But it's you from sixth grade. High school seniors in Tennessee sat down for an interview ... with themselves. The video went viral on TikTok and will give you all the feels.
🎙️ This Week From Jenna:
Memorial Day is a very special holiday in our household. I first recorded the podcast below in 2022 and it remains one of my favorites. I never knew these stories about the founding of Memorial Day until I started working to uncover this history for you (thank you for that opportunity), and I find myself still moved to tears about how so many different people decided to do something very similar.
Sending love to you and your loved ones ~ and buy yourself some flowers! (listen and you'll understand).
Love, Jenna
WATCH ABOVE OR BY CLICKING HERE. You can also listen on podcasting platforms everywhere (Apple, Spotify).
🎙️ SCOOP (approx. 46 minutes) Walmart With A Warning. Listen. (SCOOP Insiders can attend this live broadcast once a week and get their news questions answered; they also receive the special video report EXCLUSIVELY delivered to their inbox along with a "cheat sheet" for the week ahead — learn more HERE).
🎙️ Quick Hit (approx. 19 minutes): Why Did A Mexican Training Ship Crash Into The Brooklyn Bridge? Watch or Listen.
🎙️ Quick Hit (approx. 14 minutes): A Reality Show For Citizenship? Watch or Listen.
🎙️ Quick Hit (approx. 15 minutes): Drama Over Immigration Reality Show – Plus, NEW FDA policy on COVID Boosters & The Latest On A $400M Plane Gifted To The U.S. Watch or Listen.
🙌🏽 What We Found SmartHER This Week:
From the kitchen of Jenna Lee ... An ice cream recall earlier this week had us deciding to make our SmartHER three-ingredient protein ice cream this week. Is it healthy? Yes. Is it delicious? Also yes. FYI — you will need a Ninja Creami for this ... the kitchen gadget summer dreams are made of.
Recipe:
- Approx. 16 ounces (or just under 2 cups) of milk
- 2 scoops of protein powder (we use this one from Jocko Fuel)
- About a tablespoon of Hershey syrup — but who is counting?
Directions:
Mix the ingredients together in a Ninja Creami container, then freeze overnight.
Thaw for 15 minutes, then blend on the "Lite Ice Cream" setting and voilà. A health, delicious summer treat.
"It was a quiet Sunday, and we had the day off except for the yearly admiral inspection. Then we heard a siren, saw planes and smoke."
– U.S. Navy member Jessie Alton Mahaffey recalling the Pearl Harbor attack.
The WWII veteran passed away peacefully in Louisiana back in March at the age of 102. He survived two separate torpedo attacks during the war. In 2024, he sat down with a local TV station and recalled some harrowing moments from the attacks, including being aboard the battleship USS Oklahoma when Japanese air forces attacked on December 7, 1941. Check out the story HERE.
And that's The Weekend Digest!
❤️,
Jenna and the SHN Team
Daily news, interviews, our latest podcasts and more at www.SmartHERNews.com.
