In the
past I have mentioned that it is sometimes difficult to submit columns to a
weekly newspaper and be time-appropriate with the subject matter every week. So
many times when I sit down to peck out an article for the paper I forget to
look at a calendar so I end up missing some important date in history or a local
event or something.
Case in
point: the June 6th edition of The Citizen where I’m yammering on
about priorities and everything and it just happens to be the 70th
Anniversary of D-Day! Are you kidding me? Where the heck were my priorities? One
of the most famous days in the history of Canada and the world and I let it
slip by? Tsk, tsk, tsk.
From
Wikipedia: “The Normandy Landings, codenamed Operation Neptune, were the landing
operations on 6 June 1944 (termed D-Day) of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation
Overlord during World War II. The largest seaborne invasion in history, the
operation began the invasion of German-occupied Western Europe, led to the
restoration of the French
Republic
As time marches on and the survivors
become fewer and fewer and the memories of the event grow dimmer we need a
reminder of just how important that day in history is. Our country grew up that
day. A lot of sacrifice was required for that to happen and we need to remember
that.
In a world
where women are kidnapped for receiving an education and citizens are
persecuted for sharing their thoughts and violence and oppression are standard
operating procedures we need to know what we have in this country. Many of us
do…so many more don’t.
I had the great fortune of being able to talk
to a veteran who had been wounded storming the beach that day. Many of the
former soldiers who saw the kind of action that he had didn’t often talk about
their war years but so many years removed from the carnage I think he was
finally happy to share his experiences.
As detailed
as his tales were I cannot for the life of me put myself in his place at that time.
It is impossible. I’ve seen my share of war movies and documentaries but there
can be no substitute for the real thing.
He told me
he lay in an army hospital tent for days as shells flew over and around him and
he said he wondered when the next whistling bomb would explode in his tent. Can
you imagine? He was eventually transferred to a hospital in London where he recovered and then went back
into action instead of heading home, which had been an option.
I asked him why he went back into
combat instead of going home and he nonchalantly stated, “Well, that’s just
what you did. You couldn’t let the boys down” and, he says, “I’m one of the
lucky ones. I did come home.”
It’s easy to become complacent.
It’s easy to think that living in this country is a right not a privilege.
Every now and then we need a reset. It is becoming harder and harder to sit
down and share these kinds of experiences with World War II veterans but read a
book, watch a documentary or talk to one of today’s soldiers who’ve seen some action
and maybe your perspective will change. Maybe, even for just a little while,
you will appreciate the country that you live in today and remember the
ultimate sacrifices that have been made on your behalf.
“The patriot volunteer, fighting
for country and his rights, makes the most reliable soldier on Earth.”- General
Stonewall Jackson (1824-1863).
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