Remembrance Day 2011 / Veterans' Week: How Will You Remember?

[Natalka]

Silver Cross Mother -

Patty Braun from Raymore, SK. will represent all mothers who lost a child in wars over the decades at the National Remembrance Day ceremony in Ottawa.
Braun will lay a wreath at the base of the National War Memorial in honour of all the men and women who died in service to Canada.








Her son, Cpl. David Braun, was killed by a suicide bomber in Kandahar in 2006; three other soldiers were wounded. He joined the Canadian Forces in February 2002 and was a member of the 2nd Battalion, Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry.

[Mamaelmo]

Every year part of the Rememberance day Cermonies here, if anyone goes to the one at Harbour Sation. I will be there with the Army Cadets.

[sueshe]

My mil is in the honour guard at the Legions ceremony in Vernon. I go every year to support her,the remaining vets,the families and all those participating. It's an hour out of my day,followed by time at the legion,having lunch and toasting and remembering. I am grateful.

[Natalka]

For the Fallen
by Laurence Binyon
With proud thanksgiving, a mother for her children,
England mourns for her dead across the sea.
Flesh of her flesh they were, spirit of her spirit,
Fallen in the cause of the free.
Solemn the drums thrill; Death august and royal
Sings sorrow up into immortal spheres,
There is music in the midst of desolation
And a glory that shines upon our tears.
They went with songs to the battle, they were young,
Straight of limb, true of eye, steady and aglow.
They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted;
They fell with their faces to the foe.
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

They mingle not with their laughing comrades again;
They sit no more at familiar tables of home;
They have no lot in our labour of the day-time;
They sleep beyond England's foam.
But where our desires are and our hopes profound,
Felt as a well-spring that is hidden from sight,
To the innermost heart of their own land they are known
As the stars are known to the Night;
As the stars that shall be bright when we are dust,
Moving in marches upon the heavenly plain;
As the stars that are starry in the time of our darkness,
To the end, to the end, they remain.

[Natalka]

Why Wear a Poppy
By Don Crawford

"Please wear a poppy", the lady said,
And held one forth, but I shook my head
Then I stopped and watched as she offered them there,
And her face was old and lined with care;


"But beneath the scars the years had made
There remained a smile that refused to fade.
A boy came whistling down the street,
Bouncing along on carefree feet.


"His smile was full of joy and fun,
"Lady" said he "may I have one?"
When she pinned it on, he turned to say:
"Why do we wear a poppy to-day?"


"The lady smiled in her wistful way
And answered: "This is Remembrance Day,
"And the poppy there is a symbol for
The gallant men who died in the war. "


"And because they did, you and I are free
That's why we wear a poppy you see.
I had a boy about your size,
With golden hair and big blue eyes.


"He loved to play and jump and shout
Free as a bird, he would race about.
As the years went by, he learned and grew
And became a man - as you will too. "


"He was fine and strong, with a boyish smile,
But he'd seemed with us such a little while
When war broke out and he went away.
I still remember his face that day.


"When he smiled at me and said good-bye.
'I'll be back soon, Mum, so please don't cry.'
But the war went on and he had to stay
And all l could do was wait and pray.


"His letters told us of the awful fight
(I can see at in my dreams at night),
With the tanks and guns and cruel barbed wire,
And the mines and the bullets, the bombs and the fire."


"That sure did sound like an awful fight,
But your son - did he come back alright?"
A tear rolled down each faded cheek;
She shook her head but didn't speak.


"I slunk away in a sort of shame,
And if you were with me, you'd have done the same;
For our thanks, in giving is aft delayed,
Though our freedom was bought - and thousands paid!


"And so, when we see a poppy worn,
Let us reflect on the burden borne
By those who gave very all
When asked to answer their country's call
That we at home in peace might live.
Then wear a poppy! - and give!

[Natalka]

[Natalka]

I hadn't heard this before - it's very good.



Soldiers Cry (by Roland Majeau)

Talk of trouble is sent through the country
And we need an army
To fight for the right
Young men enlist and are sent to the battle
To fight the offender and help our allies

And the young men cry Oh Canada
Well gladly go and fight for thee
And the young men cry Oh Canada
Well fight to keep you free

The battles raging
Gun fire is blazing
A tired young soldier is clinging to life
He's ordered off
And obeys by advancing
No hope of returning from the enemy fire

And the soldier cries Oh Canada
If it must be so, I'll die for thee
And the soldier cries Oh Canada
I'll die to keep you free

And we all miss oh Canada
The land where we all used to be
And we all long for Canada
The true north
strong and free

And the soldier cries Oh Canada
If it must be so, I'll die for thee
And the soldier cries Oh Canada
I'll die to keep you free

Far away we had seen a great danger
And yet theres a danger much greater within
The noise we make as we constantly bicker
Would hush not a whisper if we listen to him

All the thousands cry Oh Canada
Is that why we have died for thee?
And the soldiers cry Oh Canada
We died to keep you free

And the soldier cries oh Canada
Be true
And strong
For me

------------------
There are Canadian, UK, and US versions
http://www.rolandmajeau.com/soldiers.html

[kanewtz]

I always stop at 11:11 for a minute to reflect.

Tomorrow is a stat holiday for me, however I will be going into work on Overtime.

[Brandy Hunter]

And the day is here...

[darwinsmistake]

words can not express how greatfull i am to our brave men and women

[Natalka]

When I was in school, every year we participated in the Legion poster and poetry contests.

This is the 2011 Senior colour Poster winner, by Atalanta Shi, 15, of Burnaby, B.C.

[Natalka]

Black and White Poster—First: Tim MacDonald, 18, Malagash, N.S

[Natalka]

Grade 12 student Katelyn Major, 17, of St. Brieux, Sask., winner of the senior essay competition

The Price of Freedom
By Katelyn Major

Yes, there’s a voice that begs us listen,
And lo! The text is plain.
“We have paid the price of freedom,
Let it not have been in vain!”

-An excerpt from the poem The Man We Never Knew by Don Crawford.

What is the price of freedom? What could possibly be exchanged for the right to live? On Nov. 11, every year, we honour those who have paid the price of our freedom. These people are the brave men and women who fought in the trenches, in the hospitals and on the blood-stained battlefields. These are the people who left their homes, families and familiarity, for the foreign, war-ravaged, and frightening places of Europe, Asia and Africa. These people gave up their lives and their innocence, so that we could live in a world of peace.

Many of these heroic men and women are passing on after a long life of serving their country. It is their memories that keep the flame of remembrance alive. Without these memories, however, the flame is beginning to flicker. How can we let it die, this fire that bonded a world so broken and tired after years of war? How can we let it smoulder, and let war happen again? We cannot.

We cannot forget. We must keep these memories alive, in all of us, in every Canadian. We must remember the sounds of bullets cutting the silent air, and the shrill ring of the bomb siren in the dark night. We must remember what it was like to face the enemy, so cold in a prejudiced hate, and what it was like to see a best friend fall. Even if we were not there, we cannot let the memories of those who were, fade like whispers in the wind.

We must also remember the shouts of joy when surrender was declared, and the millions of thanks, and tears, and praise that the soldiers received when they finally came home. We must remember the looks on war prisoners’ faces when they were rescued, and the cries of exultation when whole countries were liberated.

It is on Remembrance Day that I think of my grandfather. My grandfather served as an engineer in the Second World War. And like many of the soldiers who survived, war scarred him. I do not remember the sadness or the hardships my grandfather went through after the war. Even as I was told about them, when I saw my grandfather at the Remembrance Day services, I saw no hardships in his eyes. I saw pride as he walked up the church aisle in his navy blue suit. I could hear honour with every jingling step of his medals, and in every note of the Last Post. I did not see scars.

We have to honour these men and women, and the most profound way to do that is to never forget what they did for us. Remember their sacrifice or risk losing a major part of our history, and national pride. Remembering is not just reading about the battles in history books. It is wearing the poppy on your heart, and bowing your head in a moment of silence. Remembering is visiting the war memorials scattered around the world. Remembering is never letting young men and women give their lives for such a cause ever again.

Remembrance Day is not only about remembering those who paid the ultimate price; it is about fighting for what they gave their lives for, fighting for their cause. To forget this, to forget the reason but to remember the fight, to forget the casualties but to remember the glory, is to forget them. Lest we forget those who paid the price for our freedom.

[hollyquaiscer]

[hollyquaiscer]