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The Goderich Signal-Star, 1985-11-06, Page 26�.� • of 4.3 .+,,< THEY DID NOT DIE IN VAIN It is Remembrance time again and we will again pay tribute, with appropriate ceremony, at the cenotaphs and memorials erected to our war dead throughout Canada, and beyond. Eighty-six years have passed since the South African War began, 71 years since the begin- ning of World War I, forty-six years since World War II broke out, and even the conflict in Korea started nearly 16 years ago. Thus there must be a large number of young people who cannot, from personal memory, have a full appreciation of the meaning of Remem- brance, even including some sons and daughters of those being honoured at the Remembrance services. Are we informing? As we participate in these ceremonies - by ac- tual attendance at the services, not in front of television sets, I hope - we must ask ourselves what we are doing to inform our children, our youth generally, of the significance of this oc- casion. Perhaps we might go further and ask if we can analyze it for ourselves satisfactorily. Well, why do we hold Remembrance services? Why should we attend them, especially when the wind is chill or more attractive pursuits hec Icon. Undoubtedly the first reason is the war dead themselves; more than 112,000 of them in the four conflicts listed above. Their names and their regiments are permanently inscribed in Canada's four Books of Remembrance, and in the hearts of those who knew and loved them. Their graves are in far -away places and in the seven seas. It is a sobering experience to walk among the serried rows of headstones in the war cemeteries and note their names, sometimes familiar ones, and their ages - 18, 20, 23, 25; truly the flower of youth, its pro- mise unfulfilled. But not all of them have markers over their final resting places. Those who "vanished" are commemorated on the great memorials erected by Canada and the Commonwealth War Graves Commission, of which Canada is a senior member. They are but names, a single line to each, on panels of stone or bronze; 11,285 on the ramparts of the ma- jestic Vimy Memorial alone. Why did they have to die? Was their sacrifice worthwhile? Their lives were part of the price demanded of the free world for the preservation of freedom. For freedom is nevet "free". 1t is the prerogative only of those who are prepared to defend it. Failure to resist each encroachment upon it inevitably means that it must be redeemed, eventually, at an J4o.t�,%say bi BONNIE TURNER' Seaforth4f; Qntario. It was the twelfth of November: the day after Remembrance Day. The autumn morning was Cold and dreary, and my mind was as cloudy 4s the dr4b sky above. Angry at the world and the people,, in it, 1. walked swiftly, lost in my own thoughts. Almost mechanically, 1 drew my coat around myself and sat down on the sgeasbned park bench beside the cenotaph commemorating the men killed in the World Wars and the Korean War. There I stayed, seeing no one who passed by and ' caring about nothing but my own problems. Then, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a stooped figure, slowly making his way in the brisk wind. With his head down, and gnarled hands clutching his overcoat,, the old gentleman walked as though every step were an effort. Unaware of my presence, the man stopped nearby. He drew himself up with dignity. His eyes held a look of pride. Following his gaze, I saw that the old gentleman's eyes were upon the cenotaph, which was newly laden in wreaths. Probably he was a veteran of one of the world wars. I smiled and looked back to him. His eyes were no longer on the monu- ment. He was staring into the grass near the bench where I sat. Tears welled up in his eyes. Sadly he shook his head and started off down the street. 1 was puzzled. What object could make a man as 1 had just seen, so distressed? My eyes sear- ched the ground for what was lying there, and there it was - a poppy. It was not even real. Just a simple plastic poppy was on the ground. 1 frowned. How could such a forlorn little flower make a man so heavy-hearted? What did it matter? Remembrance Day was already over. awesome price. The 15 years that culminated in 1945 are a classic example of that axiom. Was it worthwhile? Only those who have lost their freedom can adequately answer that. Only those who know the tyranny of a dic- tatorship, and the darkness that descends when justice is abrogated, know what it is like not to be free. There are many such people in your com- munity. Let them speak! Let us, on this Remembrance Day, honour those who, by their sacrifice, gave us the right to live in democratic freedom. An inspiration Let us make it our resolve to preserve their memory, and to inspire in our children the ideals for which they gave their lives. Let us, with sympathy and enthusiasm, do all we can to care for their widows and their or- phans, and for their surviving comrades whose wounds and scars were also part of the price of freedom. These men, and those who marched with them, fought not for personal gain, nor for glory or for conquest. Their homeland was their love; duty was their creed; meaningful were their lives; truly they are Canada's heroes. Let us, in our time and in our way, be worthy of their tradition. Then 1 realized how much that poppy meant. That simple little flower was not just a scrap of plastic; it stood for important things. It was peace, and freedom d not only mine - but the peace and freedom of my family, and friends and neighbours. Yet, it was more than these. That poppy was the soldiers. Soldiers fighting at Vimy Ridge and at Dieppe. 1t was these men, !fighting for their freedom, and freedom for the world. It was their families back home in Canada, lying there on the soggy ground. I shrugged. Remembrance Day was over. That poppy wouldn't matter again until next year. I ,tried to think of my own .concerns, but I couldn't concentrate. My mind wandered. Once again 1 saw the old man's face as the tears came into his eyes. 1 saw the poppy, ly- ing in the grass, and I was ashamed. Remembering the soldiers who fought for Canada was not just a yearly obligation. Their gift of peace lasts all year round, and so should their memories. 1 had sat here, moments before, angry at the world, when those men loved the world so much that they gave their youth, many their lives for us. These were the people to be grateful to, not just on Remembrance Day, but every day, for they were the ones who earned our freedom. For the first time that day, the world seemed friendly to me. I knelt down, rescued the pop- py from the wet grass and proudly pinned it to my coat. The rest of the world might have thought it was just a battered and shabby poppy, but to me it was special - for now I knew what it meant. In Flan ers In Flanders fields the poppies blow Between the crosses, row on row, That mark our place; and in the sky The larks, still bravely singing, fly Scarce heard amid the guns below. We are the Dead, Short days ago We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow, Loved and were loved, and now we lie In Flanders fields. Take up our quarrel with the foe: To you from failing hands we throw The torch; be yours to hold it high. If ye break faith with us who die We shall not sleep, tho poppies grow In Flanders fields. Lieut. -Col John McCrae THANKS TO THESE COMMUNITY MINDEDSPONSORS FOR iHE1RGENEROUa I,_I/. 1L4 VEd The Royal Canadian Legion -BRANCH 109- rr (\ (.n/dEri(7h� �/' t i L)ea tI ( 1' i , not we 9" "Lest we forget" MORRIS DRAPERIES Custom Made Draperies 36 West St. 524-2551 faoderieh On N,wemher llth, if you can't remember war, think of peace. 524-8761 FLOWERS FOR TODAY GIFTS FOREVER 1f.FoTHE SQI ARE , CODE RIC H Lest We Forget W.J. Denomme FLOWER SHOP AND STAFF Look at the names on the Cenotaph and think of all the dreams that never came true. Lest We Forget. LAKEPORT STEEL INDUSTRIES Remember Those Canadians Fought For Our Peace Keep it Forever GODERICH PUBLIC UTILITIES COMMISSION We Shall Remember The Staff and Pete Shepherd, Manager plSTANDARD TRUST Lest We Forget BANK OF NOVA SCOTIA 44 Shoppers Square Goderieh For those who gave of themselves so that we may be free, "Thank You." 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