Remembering

I could sit here and post about our angst driven calls to the Health Link nurse as we all figured out symptoms and if our son, then husband, then first daughter all came down with H1N1 like illnesses. I could write about us all hanging out here in quarantine and how to not go batshit crazy, etc etc.

But the one thing I was thinking about and that we will miss because of the plague is my kids school Remembrance Day Assembly.

This sucks on a personal note because Caity was going to stand up with her class and recite a poem about the poppy's.   

The school invites a Veteran of the Second World War to attend the assembly and speak and it is lovely and respectful. Each grade or group takes a turn singing a song or reciting a poem and the special guest tells us HIS stories of the war and why it is important to him to remember all those fallen.

Myself and the other moms in attendance last year found it very touching.   I was honestly impressed and surprised that the school would go to that much effort for the day.

I get the impression that not a whole lot is taught in schools about either the 'world' wars.  I have a feeling that unless you currently have a military family or did have one, there is not much out there for all 'ancient history.'

Because it really is....there are hardly any WW1 vets left, and the boys that fought that last 'great war' are getting older and older.   Those horrors will soon be only relegated to the books and the voices who tell the tales slowly fade away.

I find interesting, the total disconnect between that 'old' war they are talking about in their school assemblies, and the conflicts that fill our news today.  A disconnect to be felt only by those who have the luxury of not losing  friends and families in our more recent battles far and away.

I wonder how the military families today feel about it all.

I also find it interesting to see how Canadians treat the day and the 'memory.' I grew up in the UK, my parents were barely born then, but lived through rationing and the many other deprivations brought on by a war that practically brought the UK to its knees.

I also grew up surrounded by family that were either in the military, married to it, or affected by it in some way.  My Grandmother was a war bride' who came to Canada on a still battle painted Queen Mary.

For me it is more than a memory, it is part of my family.

So as the two 'Great' Wars fade into history, I wonder about the relevance of the November 11th ceremonies.  

While I think it is important to recognize the sacrifice of those men and women, I also keep feeling that memorials to wars should also mean that there are no more of them.  That war and death and sacrifice SHOULD be a thing of the past that we recognize and thank whomever that we don't have to go through that again.

And yet here we are.  Canadians soldiers are still dying in overseas conflicts.  

Conflict and strife and horror continue to plague us all across the globe.  

Those old men and women who stand at attention at the Cenotaph are proud that they fought for freedom, but yet, really, the battle still wages on.

Lessons don't seem to be learned, blood continues to be shed.

Today, I think about all those fighting for us today.

And in the future I hope we do stand at memorials and wonder at the history of war and be thankful we are not fighting anymore.

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Original Canada Moms Blog post, Kerry also writes at Crunchy Carpets.