Lest We Forget
Today in Canada and the United States is a day that has been set aside to honor those who have served and are serving (including some of our subscribers) in our respective armed forces – it is their collective bravery that has given our two great nations the freedoms that we enjoy and often take for granted. Recently and over the decades, many of our soldiers have come home with all sorts of scars – physical scars, emotional scars, and mental scars. Others have not walked off the plane onto North American soil but rather have been carried off in flag-covered coffins. They have paid the ultimate price. They have given their lives for freedom.
This particular Remembrance Day in Canada, and Veterans Day in the United States, takes on even greater meaning given that this marks the 100-year anniversary of the signing of the Armistice to end World War I. Ten million combatants would die, including 60,000 Canadians and 116,000 Americans, before the “Great War” ended with Germany’s defeat on November 11, 1918. The last 100 days of that war was an epic Canada-dominated finale that began with an all-out attack on German positions on August 8, 1918, a major turning point for the allies.
Here at BMR we hope that you will join us as we remember and honor our men and women who have served and who are serving in our armed forces, protecting our continent and standing up for freedom and liberty throughout the world. We are truly grateful for their bravery and sacrifices, and may God continue to protect and bless our two nations.
In Flanders Fields
By Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, May 1915
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place: and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead: Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved: and now we lie
In Flanders fields!
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you, from failing hands, we throw
The torch: be yours to hold it high
If ye break faith with us who die,
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
Lest We Forget
The BMR Team
Amen. We are lucky to live in Canada.
Comment by Donald — November 11, 2018 @ 5:21 am
For those of us that lived through World War 2, we will not forget…we cannot.
Comment by John - BMR — November 11, 2018 @ 5:57 am
Well said BMR.
Comment by Charles — November 11, 2018 @ 10:24 pm