Ever since I can remember November 11th has always been very significant to me, because it has always been personal. I remember growing up watching the CBC’s Remembrance Day service from Ottawa every year with my father. My father was always very stoic as he watched but the sadness in his eyes could not be missed. My father never fought in a war or even joined the military. What my father did carry with him was the emotional scars of war that many young children shouldered; life without a father. How this truly haunted my father is something I will never understand, but losing the opportunity to grow up with a father has, I suspect, always created a void never to be filled. Knowing my father’s sacrifice and not having the chance to know my own grandfather beyond a few photographs and the shared memories of a then two year old boy who lost his father a generation ago has made the impact of war truly personal for me.
We will remember.
PICTURE THIS... 