The Eleventh Hour of the Eleventh Day of the Eleventh Month

Today is Remembrance Day in France, our Veterans’ Day. 

The French suffered horribly during and after the First World War.  They lost many, many men and their countryside was devastated.   Just the mention of Verdun  and its estimated 700,000 casualties is enough to cause one to reflect at their sacrifice.  We often stop at the memorials that exist in even

Verdun

the smallest villages and are struck by the long lists of names, often many from the same family.  Was that the end of those family trees?  No doubt it was for many. The civilians not only lost fathers, brothers, sons, and friends but were left with destroyed fields, farms, homes, and villages.   So today we pause to remember.  All governmental facilities, banks, post offices, and many businesses are closed.  The buses that are running are flying French flags.  There will be speeches, sprays of flowers reverently placed at memorials, and moments of silence.  

This is also a good time to remember all the American farm boys, like Anna’s grandfather, who became Doughboys.  They, too, went through the hell that was WWI.  Those who survived were proud of their service, but didn’t talk a lot about it.  Anna’s grandfather told her he was just a cook in the Army – the documentation for his unit and for his Purple Heart tell a different story.  But, those Doughboys tipped the balance, and at last the war was over ...on The Eleventh Hour of the Eleventh Day of the Eleventh Month.