Friday, November 11, 2005
Friday Nov. 11, 2005 - Year 3, Day 236 - poppy & a bugle
Gusta cannot figure out where the snow went; darkness gone, I walked later than usual, 0C /32F , mix of sun & cloud as the neighbourhood sleeps on this semi-holiday
GL is having a birthday today - always easy to remember that date; all the best my friend !
but, is the darkness gone ?
do we live in an age of enlightenment, or simply one of information overload without understanding ?
today we pause for a couple of minutes silence; 11AM, the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month; the anniversary of the end of WW I & other conflicts too this is a Canadian tradition marked by a poppy & a bugle – as we remember those who lived as well as those who died, those who fought, those who worked, those who did our dirty work in war time & peace time & the tenuous in-between times
I am encouraged when I read/listen to historians analyze the progress of democracy around the world, explain how it reduces conflict & warmongering – I am encouraged but skeptical because I live in Canada just 200 miles from the most powerful democracy on earth, which is mired in a conflict on the other side of the world - a conflict they started, a war that sends body bags home every day
I had the privilege of hearing a speech earlier this year delivered by retired Lt. Gen Roméo Dallaire who commanded Canada’s peace-keeping force in Rwanda among many other distinguished accomplishments
I was struck by the peaceful spirit of this great Canadian, now a Senator, former COO of our country’s war fighting machine
I was struck by his vivid descriptions of unspeakable atrocities behind the headlines; more than anything, I was struck by the stories of Canadian soldiers braving unspeakable dangers to save lives, doing things soldiers from other countries were avoiding – in harm’s way they work for us every day while we sit comfortably in the largest safe democratic country on the planet
conflict, war & killing is stupid – few would disagree, but will there come a day when we citizens of the world in this 21st century start a true revolution in human behaviour?
is the darkness gone ? will it ever be gone ?
for those who are today or have ever been in harm’s way for us, we owe them our lives because they risked & often lost there’s for us
lest we forget
Mark
GL is having a birthday today - always easy to remember that date; all the best my friend !
but, is the darkness gone ?
do we live in an age of enlightenment, or simply one of information overload without understanding ?
today we pause for a couple of minutes silence; 11AM, the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month; the anniversary of the end of WW I & other conflicts too this is a Canadian tradition marked by a poppy & a bugle – as we remember those who lived as well as those who died, those who fought, those who worked, those who did our dirty work in war time & peace time & the tenuous in-between times
I am encouraged when I read/listen to historians analyze the progress of democracy around the world, explain how it reduces conflict & warmongering – I am encouraged but skeptical because I live in Canada just 200 miles from the most powerful democracy on earth, which is mired in a conflict on the other side of the world - a conflict they started, a war that sends body bags home every day
I had the privilege of hearing a speech earlier this year delivered by retired Lt. Gen Roméo Dallaire who commanded Canada’s peace-keeping force in Rwanda among many other distinguished accomplishments
I was struck by the peaceful spirit of this great Canadian, now a Senator, former COO of our country’s war fighting machine
I was struck by his vivid descriptions of unspeakable atrocities behind the headlines; more than anything, I was struck by the stories of Canadian soldiers braving unspeakable dangers to save lives, doing things soldiers from other countries were avoiding – in harm’s way they work for us every day while we sit comfortably in the largest safe democratic country on the planet
conflict, war & killing is stupid – few would disagree, but will there come a day when we citizens of the world in this 21st century start a true revolution in human behaviour?
is the darkness gone ? will it ever be gone ?
for those who are today or have ever been in harm’s way for us, we owe them our lives because they risked & often lost there’s for us
lest we forget
Mark
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