Tomorrow our nation pauses to honor our nation’s fallen heroes, and we have a bunch of them, approximately 3.5 million by last count.

Whether through an official Memorial Day service or through private reflection, all Americans should pause to reflect on the great sacrifices our men and women of the armed forces have made for us.

Memorial Day, which for many Americans has evolved into a three-day weekend that unofficially kicks off the summer fun season, has much more reverent roots.

The holiday is for all of us to remember and honor our fallen soldiers.

Memorial Day’s roots stem from the days following the American Civil War in which a number of good-hearted Americans realized the nation should do a better job of keeping up the cemeteries of fallen soldiers, from the North and the South sides of the war.

Eventually their efforts — one of the earliest started in Columbus, Miss. — spanned what was originally known as Decoration Day. That holiday morphed over time becoming our modern Memorial Day.

Our country is truly blessed by the sacrifices of our brave men and women in uniform.

We are so blessed; in fact, it’s possible that we can take for granted their work.

Every American should visit some of our country’s national cemeteries.

Among the most famous of these is Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Va., near Washington, D.C.

If you’ve never visited Arlington, please find the time to do. It should be on the list of “must-dos” for every American.

Once the plantation owned by Confederate Army General Robert E. Lee, the site was converted into a national cemetery.

The rows and rows of meticulously aligned white stone markers are sobering reminders of the incredible numbers of Americans and their family members who sacrificed their time and sometimes their lives for the service of others.

Cemetery policies dictate and important, egalitarian fact — all gravestones are identical, meaning a lowly soldier earns the same respect as a highly decorated officer.

Famous actors, U.S. presidents and even Civil Rights Era heroes are all buried there, right alongside their brothers and sister, famous or virtually unheard of.

That’s fitting and just. It’s also American to the core — all men (and women) are created equal.

It’s difficult to walk the rolling hills of Arlington and not be overwhelmed the sheer magnitude of the place.

Arlington is truly a special place, worthy of distinction.

Likewise, Natchez is blessed to have a small version of that place of awe.

On Cemetery Road, just past the Natchez City Cemetery sits the quiet resting place of American heroes, the Natchez National Cemetery.

Seeing the egalitarian beauty of the rows of white stones puts the deep meaning of Memorial Day in perspective.

Beyond the official Memorial Day distinction, many people may not realize that Congress established the National Moment of Remembrance in 2000.

The move simply asks Americans to pause at 3 p.m. on Memorial Day to reflect on the meaning of the day.

That seems the absolute least we can do for the amazing sense of security our military heroes have provided us for our lifetimes.

Kevin Cooper is publisher of The Natchez Democrat. He can be reached at 601-445-3539 or kevin.cooper@natchezdemocrat.com.