Crystal Fullerton Fine Art

Julie 14x11 oil Portrait Commission

Remembrance day has come and gone.

I thought about how fleetingly we "celebrate" this day as I put my poppies away for yet another year.

This years Remembrance Day was dark and wet as a massive fall storm soaked our veterans with 90 mm+ of rain. One older veteran was interviewed stating that he thought the event should have been held outside so everyone could get a taste of what the soldiers endured day after day, year after year.

He sounded bitter, even if he had earned the right to voice his emotion, I felt his statement was harsh and misdirected. I watched the other people in attendance who laid wreaths in honour of family members long since past and was proud of the number of young people present. As Great Great Grandchildren laid memorials I realized that the youth of our Nation are keenly aware of what awaits them if Peace can not be achieved.

Awareness I believe is the first step in finding solutions.

This statement does little to help those who are currently serving our country but the awareness that we have soldiers throughout the world protecting those great great grandchildren calms my fears.

For the record, I would have stood in the rain to hear the ceremonies but I was pleased to be part of the standing room only crowd that filled the Church. There was no applause or raucous cheering to drive home the point that we support our troops but there were tears shed as the crowd stood in silence to remember those who served, are serving and will be serving.

God Bless those who serve.