Remembrance Day

Some 30,000 visitors thronged to Parliament Hill today. Parents and grandparents attended along with their children and grandchildren. At least one widow was there with her child. The little girl was crying. The chaplain of the Canadian forces offered a prayer of thanksgiving to the men and women who had saved us from the tyranny of Nazi Germany, those long gone from the first World War, the Merchant Navy, our Blue Beret Peacekeepers, the Korean war veterans and those who serve in Afghanistan. A rabbi not only prayed for our veterans but he also included a touching prayer on behalf of all our cultures and religions.
 The numbers of our veterans are dwindling. Those of  the second World War who are still with us appear to be "Old." I remember when, not too long ago, they were vibrant and full of  piss and vinegar. Now we are seeing much younger men and women joining the ranks at this auspicious occasion.
Canada has never gone to war to take the land and possessions of our foes. We have only swung into action to combat an evil regime that was threatening not only the peace of Canada but for other countries as well.
I would like to point out to our newer immigrants that we are not a war-like nation. We only go to war when all else fails. But then our armed forces go at the job fiercely and professionally (albeit, frequently without the latest in weapons and armament.)
This always is a touching ceremony. It brings tears to my eyes as I watch the sometimes shaky old-timers and especially so when the Ottawa Children's Choir sings O' Canada.
Our new governor-general affably chatted with the vets and visitors. The bands played, the veterans marched followed by cadet corps. The artillery guns fired a 21-gun salute, fighter jets flew past including a WW2 Spitfire and a Mustang. The CBC's Peter Mansbridge and his guest, historian Jack Granatstein, didn't talk so much that you couldn't hear what was happening as the bands played and the marchers marched.
And finally, as usual, the visitors placed their bright red poppies on the tomb of the unknown soldier.--Irvine Brace