Remembrance Day 2020

November 11 th .  Remembrance Day, is about taking time to reflect and remember the fallen of The Great War.

Over time it has come to represent the commemoration of the fallen of all military actions since. In many ways the act of remembrance is not only a reflection, but an appreciation of those that have served and are serving in the present.

 

Ottawa War Memorial

Two minutes of quiet contemplation as a unified country is fitting. This is the least that we can do to honour the fallen that have secured our way of life and to acknowledge those presently serving.

This year it is perhaps more poignant as our present day echoes the post war Spanish Flu pandemic. Four waves, lasting from 1918 to 1920, devastated an already war torn world. Estimates of those taken by the flu range up to 100 million.

Then as now, there were front line health care providers facing an unrelenting enemy. The hardships endured by the war ravaged countries, veterans and civilians made contending with the influenza virus more challenging. Today we have the benefits of improved public health measures, enhanced science and a concerted global effort to subdue COVID-19.

Inherent in the Act of Remembrance is the human capacity for Hope. Each armed conflict has a glimmer of hope that the outcome will improve things as  lives return to some semblance of normal. As in 1918 with the end of the War and throughout the Spanish Flu, we hoped for a lasting positive outcome. So too today.

Poppy

                              Lest We Forget.