War and My Family

As a child I had the honor to meet on some of my Saturday mornings with my grandfather and his friends with whom he had served in the First World War, as well as some from the Second World War, for coffee at the Hudson Bay Store downtown. During these moments I got the chance to talk to them about their war experience. One story comes to mind of one of their comrades being buried alive with one arm sticking out from what was to become the new wall of the trench. Before they went over the wall they all touched his hand for good luck. Silly, maybe; but those who didn’t failed to return. All of them said that they hoped that I would never see war in my life time. That wish of theirs has come true for Canadians, at least. They all believed that peacekeeping was the way to go for Canada as a country with a military large enough to protect Canada's territory. I asked if they would do it again, and without hesitation, the answer was always yes. My father's father enjoyed his service during the wars and believed that war was the ultimate test of man's ability. This did not stop him from having the nightmares about the war which all veterans had but did not talk about with each other. At the same time was quietly understood by each other and ignored when it raised itself during day's light. Probably due to this attitude and feeling he served in the reserves between the wars. Why did these men join up? Most answered duty to God, country and monarchy as well as loyalty to one's countrymen. For some it was a means to get away from where they lived, to see the world, and the fact that the military provided a steady income, room and board and three meals a day. My grandfather was a typical stiff British-style officer and man. He believed that every British boy and girl should have three books besides them: the Bible, Shakespeare and Milton, for who could be lonely or uninspired with these masterpieces of literature? During the First World War he was offered a commission with a regiment in England that eventually went to Gallipoli but turned it down so he could stay with the men he had joined up and trained with. It was a lucky decision on his part, as time was to prove. Who knew at that time the disaster that would unfold at Gallipoli? As for the vast majority of my youth I came home after school to see on the TV the US dead coming home from Vietnam, the families that suffered the deaths of their sons or in other cases daughters with the nursing corps or Red Cross; as well as the live-action shots. I even remember when they ran out of coffins for the dead. I watched as well from the outside the race riots, peace movement, women's liberation movement, all which affected us here in Canada in one way or another. The first major fight I had with my father was over the Kent State University massacre. This is when I first realized that the world he knew was no longer the world he knew; nor would be again. Also at this time I began to consider leaving school and travelling to North Dakota, where I would to enlist in the US military to prove my worth in combat. What stopped me was that the veterans that I had coffee with on those Saturday mornings would not want me to do this nor would they approve of the sacrifice. I thought I owed them at least this much for their sacrifice. I had promised my grandfather before his death that I would keep the faith and remember those that had died in not only the recent wars but those of all wars. For life is the ultimate sacrifice that a human being can give to anything that he or she believes in. In death we give up all that we have and all that we will ever have or be in life. We give up our future as well as our family’s future. Our family's and friends' hopes, aspirations and desires for us in life. The ultimate sacrifice, when all is considered. This is partly why most veterans feel bad that they survived and their comrades didn’t. The sense that they didn’t or don’t measure up to what they saw in those that died. Those things we value in people, goodness, caring, education . . . the things that ability allows one to achieve and contribute to a better society. So I take my children to attend Remembrance Day services. I never work on that day. I choose a memorial that no one usually goes to so as to make the point more meaningful to them. It's strange how few people show up to remember until there is a conflict that touches them. Then again it is understandable with Canadian business being more interested in profits then in honouring our veterans, and complaining about lost profits if their workers are afforded the time off or day off to attend services. I know of no businesses in Canada that fully support their employees as members of the Canadian Forces Reserves. At the same time Canadian businesses are first in line to get military contracts and benefits. One would think that if a country truly cared about its peoples' sacrifice in war that it would make a national holiday of temperance. One asks what good comes from these wars in our world over the generations of mankind. As long as man desires to dominate each other and evil prevails, man will always need to police and defend. As for learning, war provides a fertile breeding ground for knowledge, technology, science, new medical advancements and manufacturing achievements. All leap generations ahead to the point that would never be thought of in a fraction of time if not for war. I believe that we as human beings can make the same accomplishments by finding common ground; but by also at the same time respecting all life as well as each other would greatly help in eliminating the need for war. Only from knowledge and understanding, not ignorance, can one respect others' cultures, beliefs and thinking. In Canada we have multiculturalism. A country whose society is free from racism. More than a matter of principle, this is Canada’s vision. To bring together people of all backgrounds—-ethnic, racial, and religious—-together to build a society where one’s heritage is a source of pride and inspiration. Common ground, that promotes pride in oneself and respect for who we are, where we come from and how that makes us who we are. That is what we as individuals bring to the table when we as contribute to the development of our nation. Canada is a country that believes in freedom, justice, liberty and the rule of law. Over its existence Canada has defended these beliefs on behalf of others that could no longer or were unable to defend themselves, as well as defending itself from attacks and invasion. I don't know the solution to the problem of war. I just know one thing. If man has to choose war, it had better be as a last resort and only for the best and noblest reasons that mankind holds dear. For there is really only one truth: all life is sacred and deserves our respect, no matter how trying the circumstances. Man can change and will. It is a matter of time. To quote Milton from his work Paradise Regained: “To whom our Saviour answer thus returned: - “All things are best fulfilled in their due time; and time there is for all things, truth hath said.” James R. Jenson [Proofreader's note: this article was edited for spelling and typos on June 5, 2005]

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