On Nov. 11, Canadians pause at 11 a.m. for two minutes to actively remember and honour those who served and sacrificed in times of war and peace. It’s becoming apparent in everyday life that people are forgetting why we do this.
For years, I have been able to speak with generations of soldiers who signed the dotted line, like myself. Over a coffee and, more than once, an alcoholic beverage, some disclosed their experiences at war. Many others told of why they chose to sign up for Canada.
I can write and talk for hours about my experiences speaking with those individuals. Now, thanks to technology, we can learn first-hand accounts of what our soldiers faced overseas.
But what does that mean? Let me give you a small glimpse of what it meant for some of those I spoke with. I have deliberately left names out because their experiences are broad overviews of service at these places.
The First World War included battles like Vimy Ridge, Passchendaele and Ypres. It meant frozen nights in trenches you dug. It meant waiting for an enemy to leave the trenches they dug. Ultimately, it meant sitting, waiting for impending battle for days and days on end.
Veterans spoke of what it meant in these places. At Vimy, soldiers followed a barrage of artillery shells, which roared so loudly that the sound carried over 200 kilometres when the guns first opened fire. That battle brought us together as a nation for the first time to accomplish a goal many others had failed to achieve.
At Ypres, Belgium, Canadian soldiers were among the first to have their lungs seared by chlorine gas. Learning, however, that urinating on a cloth and putting it on your face could protect you. Some of those soldiers spent the rest of their lives in Sunnyside Hospital in Toronto, Ont.
At Passchendaele, they spoke of the mud and rats and of looking into the enemy’s eyes while they fought hand-to-hand for their lives after a “bayonet rush.”
None of us had to endure the horrors soldiers from the First World War did, living in six-foot-deep trenches, day in and day out, exposed to the elements, enemy fire and death.
A merchant mariner from the Second World War once recounted watching ships torpedoed by U-boats and having to run over survivors because they weren’t allowed to stop. If they did, they were at risk of being torpedoed themselves.
A Royal Canadian Air Force veteran spoke of flak exposure as he rode as a tail gunner on a Lancaster Bomber during hours-long raids over Germany. He watched other planes go down, lost many friends, and was lucky to come home. The life expectancy for a member of RAF Bomber Command was between 5 and 15 missions. Additionally, less than 50 per cent of aircrew survived the war.
A third, a Sherman tank gunner, could remember coming across a German “Tiger” tank and the battle between his crews and theirs. They lost three of their four tanks, and he suffered survivor’s guilt, never knowing why he got to come home.
More recently and closer to home, A soldier from Edmonton gave his life in Afghanistan; before his final tour, he put a tattoo on his back which shared his reason for joining: “For those I love, I will sacrifice.” He was killed when the evil overseas attacked his armoured vehicle on Sept 3, 2008.
The stories and examples can go on for pages. Canadians chose to unselfishly give their lives so that others didn’t have to.
Many fought with the mindset that the evil overseas would appear on our doorsteps if they didn’t stop it.
They choose to sign the dotted line after serious consideration.
Many understood the line they were signing could mean paying a cost for their country, up to and including their life.
In conclusion, stop and say thank you when you see those dressed in uniform on Monday. Remember, our country would be a much different place without them.
Read More: Opinion: Pte. Stephenson remembered – Meridian Source
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