On the 11th of November, a Friday this year, we Americans will pause for a few minutes in observance of Veteran’s Day. We have been doing this for over a century. It is the final patriotic holiday of the year, starting with Memorial Day in May, the Independence Day on the fourth of July, and Veteran’s Day, always on the 11th of November. Most observances are held at 11 o’clock in the morning.
There is a reason for these holidays. On Memorial Day we remember all the men and women who sacrificed their lives for the freedoms you and I enjoy this day. The parade and ceremony are formal and solemn, as befits a memorial for the dead. We usually cut loose and enjoy ourselves with parades, band concerts, and fireworks on Independence Day as we mark the founding of this nation.
Veteran’s Day is different. For one thing, it is not a moveable holiday. It is observed on the specified day and hour because it marks the end of World War One with the armistice at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month. Originally it was called Armistice Day, and at first it was to express our gratitude to the Doughboys (and women who served) to “make the world safe for democracy” in what people thought would be the “war to end all wars.” Today, after the Second World War, Korea, Viet Nam, Afghanistan, Iraq, and countless other battles and wars, all veterans are recognized and honored, and the name was changed. Even for people who do not like changes, this is a good change.
This holiday is often too easily overlooked After a long winter, especially in the Upper Midwest, by the end of May we are ready to join together with others for the parade, and then spend the rest of the day outside. July Fourth is just too much fun to miss. However, Veteran’s Day comes when the weather can be cold and damp, and that often means the crowd is small.
No two ways about it, recognizing and honoring our veterans from both times of war and peace, is truly important. Nearly all of them came home after their time in uniform, reconnected with family and friends, and then hung up their uniform and started the next chapter of their life. That is not always easy for men and women who come home without a visible scratch on them but are wounded in mind and soul.
That is one reason Veteran’s Day is important. The Doughboys organized their own group – the American Legion. Half a century earlier veterans from Mr. Lincoln’s Army organized themselves into the Grand Army of the Republic. The Doughboy’s did the same. In time the Legion began working in partnership with the Veterans of Foreign Wars for the over-all benefit of all men and women who served in the military and were honorably discharged. Because of these men, the Veteran’s Administration was established. Even with all of its shortcomings, and trust me, there are plenty, it continues to serve those who served.
When we see a vet, perhaps wearing a military baseball cap, or their medals, we look them in the eye, shake their hand, and say “thank you for your service.” We mean it, but only a veteran truly understands the full impact and meaning of military service, especially during times of war. Even so, saying ‘thank you’ is truly important because it is the glue that holds this country together when we recognize them for what they did.
There are at least two reasons why we express our gratitude. A big part of our recognition is for all the work they have done once they came home. First, we are grateful for all the good they have done to build up this country after they returned home. Some went to school on the GI Bill, becoming the tradesmen and women who built our schools, roads, hospitals, and other public places. They pulled the electric wires and hooked up the plumbing, glazed the windows and did the plastering and painting – and a lot more. They built homes and office buildings, and much more.
Others went back to school to become our physicians and nurses, engineers, public servants, teachers, farmers and mechanics, and much more. They delivered our mail, plowed our streets, and for those working for the utility companies, kept the power and telephone lines working, sometimes in the most miserable weather possible. For them, this was more than making a living or earning a salary, but part of their commitment to maintaining this great country. They had the self-discipline to do it, and are still doing it. Often, when they talk about their work, they make it clear they see it as a sacred calling. They are still serving all of us.
Without our veterans our nation would be standing in some very deep barn yard organic fertilizer.
Second, we are grateful for what they have not done. It is something we rarely consider, but it is important. One of the first thing every inductee, whether a volunteer or conscripted, raises their right hand, states their name, and pledges their life to protecting the Constitution and the laws of this land. That pledge doesn’t come to an end when they receive their discharge papers. It is a life-long commitment, and most of them truly understand it. They live it.
Other countries sometimes fear their veterans because they have military training. That is because their loyalty is to the president or dictator, and not a constitution or their country as a whole. In turn, the leaders of those countries, usually tyrants and despots, are afraid that their veterans might rise up and turn against them. That is all the truer when there is a violent regime change. No wonder the bully boys have good reason to be afraid.
Not here, not ever. Not in the United States. We know that the veterans we honor this day have kept their sacred vow promises. We have seen it throughout our lives, and with the exception of a miniscule handful who have broken their pledge, they have a proven track record. In part, it is because their moral compass was set firmly in place while in uniform. It has been reconfirmed many times over because of the respect shown to them.
If there is a Veterans Day observance near you, give some truly serious thought to being part of it. If there is a parade, it is usually a short and small one. If there is a ceremony, it is only about half an hour long, and sometimes less. Our being present is important. It matters to our veterans and our whole country.
Several years ago, we went with another couple to a ceremony out of town. A woman came up to us with framed pictures of her husband and two brothers, all of who had served in Europe in World War Two. All three had been wounded, and one brother died from his wounds. With tears in her eyes, she showed us the picture and said, “You came for them.”
At first, I thought she meant we had come in honor of her family members. Then she realized she meant we had come for all the veterans being remembered and honored that day.
Come and join in the observance – for all of them.