Aside form "General Hospital," all the daytime soaps will be preempted for Memorial Day. "General Hospital" will be running a repeat.

In the past, the soaps have not just celebrated the men and women who have served us and our country, they have honored them with storylines.

The first year of "All My Children" focused on Ruth Martin dealing with sending her son Phillip off to the Vietnam War. While he was listed as MIA, Ruth never gave up on her son being alive. Phillip returned only to find the love his life, Tara, was involved with his best friend, Chuck.

On "The Young and the Restless," Peter Bergman (Jack) was stunned when he learned his character had been a soldier in Vietnam. It was a contrived plot. Jack had made love to a young girl in Vietnam. She never told Jack she was expecting his child. (How "Madame Butterfly.") Jack was reunited with the girl. She died shortly after they got back together. Jack got to know their son, Kemo. Kemo was on for a short time. No one ever mentions him now — well, except for actor when he says, "When I don't like a storyline, I just think it could be worse; it could be Kemo."

When Dylan first came on "The Young and the Restless," he was a soldier who suffered from PTSD. He had been taken prisoner while he was in Afghanistan. A local family saved his life. When the parents were killed, he took their young daughter, Ora, to safety. Sadly, the 5-year-old died in his arms as Dylan was getting close to escaping the enemy. Although Dylan seems to have dealt with his issues, those events are still mentioned from time to time. Who knows what will happened when he learns Sully is not his son.

On "Days of Our Lives," Phillip went off to war. He lost his leg in a firestorm while serving in Iraq. His adjustment to the injury was a front-burner storyline. The character then left Salem for several years. Phillip is back, but there has been no mention of his injury. That is a slap in the face to the compelling plotline.

"All My Children" introduced Brot in 2008. The character was played by J.R. Martinez. In real life, the actor was burned over 34 percent of his body while serving in the Iraq War. In the show's storyline, he hid from his girlfriend because he thought she would think he looked like a monster. In real life after his injury, his mother had to teach him to walk again. She did a great job: Martinez won "Dancing With The Stars."

One of the major "Days of Our Lives" storylines revolved around Dr. Tommy Horton, who was presumed dead in the Korean War. In fact, he was alive. When he returned to Salem no one knew his true identity. He fell in love with Marie Horton. He was unaware she was his sister. Marie and Tommy had not consummated their relationship before they learned who he was. A heartbroken Marie turned to the church for comfort and became a nun. As for Tommy, the character has been missing from the show since 1980.

As a child, one of my favorite things was going for a walk with my Uncle Irv on Memorial Day. We would see a man in an army uniform passing out paper poppies, and Uncle Irv would buy one for each of us. He wore it on his lapel; I would clutch mine in my hand. The tradition of the "remembrance " poppy started in 1921 in England, to commemorate veterans of foreign wars. It is still a very big deal there and in Canada, and you can still see it in the United States. A small donation, which goes to charity, gets you a poppy to wear with pride. On Memorial Day, I am going in search of a poppy.

To find out more about Lynda Hirsch and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate web page at www.creators.com.