"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." ~ John McCrae
I remember being in elementary school and having to learn the full poem of "In Flanders Fields" by John McCrae. Being in elementary school I'm not sure if I was able to comprehend what McCrae was writing. I knew that he was talking about death, which I had lost my Opa a few years previous so I understood the concept. But I don't think I fully understood the meaning of his poem in regards to war.
As a kid people can tell you how many people died in World War I or World War II, but it doesn't really click as a youth. You don't really understand the numbers or the devastation of war when you're younger unless you've lived through it already.
I think as one matures they find that this is something they are able to grasp. The true devastation that war is and how much can be taken, although again it is much more obvious to those who have gone through it.
This is why I think it's so important to hold Remembrance Day and to remember those who fought for our freedom; but, as a day of remembrance it honours those still with us who had to live through the difficulties of war.
There will never be thanks enough given to the veterans who gave their lives or their sanity, really, coming home with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). They are the reason our country is free. Why immigrants actively want to come to Canada. It is their sacrifices which have given us the life we have become accustomed to; which compared to many other countries could almost be considered luxurious.
There are those that struggle in Canada with homelessness and being unable to provide enough food on the table for their families; but, there are homeless shelters and food banks which alleviate this burden to a degree. Other countries do not have this and many people are left starving and sleeping outside.
It is the freedom and the right to choose how we live that many people have fought for from Canada.
In high school, grades 10 through 12 were taken to England and France on an educational tour. Included in this week long trip was a stop at Vimy Ridge on April 9, 2007 commemorating the 90th anniversary of the battle.
The Battle of Vimy Ridge took place during the World War I and after other countries battalions were unable to take the high ground from the Germans, the Canadians who had a fierce reputation about them in battle succeeded. Through use of a creeping barrage and tunneling below, the Canadians successfully regained control of the French territory.
To be honest it was surreal stepping off of the bus and onto that ground. It was lush, green with grass and trees were growing across the landscape, which saw the tall memorial standing above, gleaming white with the blue background of the sky.
After being struck by the beauty of the countryside a pit developed in my stomach. There was grass and trees, which were explained to have been planted by the French for our Canadian soldiers who liberated them, but the land was still scarred. The land still pockmarked from the explosions of the battle that had taken place there so long ago.
With warnings to stay along the paths set out because there were still shells that had not gone off, we walked through the area. As the trenches and tunnels wound through the area, it was hard to believe that 90 years ago this peaceful place where birds were chirping had been the location of so many deaths.
Today Vimy Ridge is a piece of Canada in France. It was given to our country, so long as a battlefield park and memorial was established, as a way to mark the national achievement and sacrifice of Canadians in France during World War One. To thank our country for what it did, France gave Canada a small tract of land to commemorate its sacrifice.
The Canadian legacy endures there, as we discovered when stopping at a small town outside Vimy Ridge on our way after the memorial service. The people of France have a reputation of being somewhat stuck up, which we did come across people like that, but while in this town after word got around we were Canadian, we were given smiles from everyone.
Remembrance Day, therefore, in my opinion, is something important to take part in. It is important to know our history as a country and to remember those who gave their lives or their sanity to ensure ours.
