THE ELEVENTH HOUR ON THE ELEVENTH DAY: REMEMBRANCE OF ALLIED SOLDIERS

Remembrance Day (Veterans Day, or Armistice Day) marks the official date in which World War I came to an end. It has since been observed as a national holiday or memorial every November 11th.

We have much to be thankful for and this day gives us the opportunity to honor our veterans and the fallen soldiers who have sacrificed so much for our country and for the free world. We remember and give thanks to these brave soldiers - those who fought in World War I, World War II, the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, and many other battles around the world.  Their sacrifices are immeasurable, their courage, great.  Remembrance Day is not intended to glorify warfare, but to recognize these exceptional men and women of valor, and to show our respect and deepest appreciation.

Wearing a red poppy is symbolic largely as a result of the famous poem, "In Flanders' Fields",  written by a Canadian doctor, and soldier, Lt. John McCrae. But more so because red poppies bloomed throughout many of the worst battlefields in Europe. It's red color is symbolic for the blood spilled in battles.  It has the same symbolism in the Polish song "Red Poppies on Monte Cassino" - a song that is very well-known and beloved to every Polish patriot, and reminiscent of the enormous loss of life in one of the greatest battles of World War II.

President Lincoln said it best when he made his famous Gettysburg Address:

But, in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our power to add or detract.  The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here."