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Wednesday, November 11, 2020 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Veterans Day
HONORING
ALL WHO
SERVED
In Flanders Fields
John McCrae ~ 1872-1918
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
Sisters Weather Forecast
Courtesy of the National Weather Service, Pendleton, Oregon
Wednesday
Thursday
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Partly Cloudy
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43/24
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Veterans Day,
responsibility
and sacrifice
By James Cunningham
Brigadier General (retired), USAF
On this Veterans Day I
might be expected to focus
on the many sacrifices
military members have
delivered while perform-
ing services to our nation.
We expect, sometimes as a
matter of fact, sacrifice to
be part and parcel of their
mission. We expect them to
step forward in our stead to
be delivered up into harm9s
way.
We send our best, our
brightest, our youngest,
and our poorest forward to
defend this nation. Evidence
of their commitment, their
sacrifice, has been left in
the fields of Gettysburg, in
trenches of France, on the
beaches of Normandy, in
the jungles of South East
Asia, and most recently in
the streets of Baghdad. They
have never failed to respond
when called to carry our
colors.
However, how often do
we consider our responsi-
bility to sacrifice so that our
military is able to pursue
our interests, often under
extreme conditions? Today
many people use this holi-
day as a vehicle to usher in
the winter season and get
ready for the holidays. Little
thought is given to the day9s
true meaning.
For me the meaning and
importance of this day can
be found in the lines of a
poem written by a Canadian
army captain serving in a
small field hospital near
Flanders, Belgium in 1915.
He stepped outside the con-
fines of the hospital and
gazed upon the disheveled
countryside littered with
freshly covered graves of
so many soldiers and within
five minutes scribbled down
the now famous words of
<In Flanders Fields.=
The last verse, reads,
<Take up our quarrel
with the foe:
To you from failing
hands we throw
The torch; be yours to
hold it high
If ye break faith with us
who die
We shall not sleep,
though poppies
G r o w, i n F l a n d e r s
Fields.=
The verse clearly
expresses the tragic human
experience and conse-
quences of bitter conflict
and the price often paid by
those, who step forward
to defend a nation9s way
of life. The verse is often
omitted when read in pub-
lic because it suggests a
controversial demand to
uphold the honor of the
fallen. I, however, see the
fallen soldiers calling me to
remember my duty to take
personal responsibility to
sacrifice, to do my part to
ensure that my country9s
liberties, its values, and its
mores remain intact for all
to enjoy.
In doing so I affirm the
tenant that freedom9s price
is eternal vigilance; that it is
every citizen9s civic respon-
sibility to sacrifice, to main-
tain our liberties through
proactive engagement with
our communities, state, and
nation.
It9s not important how
we assume this responsibil-
ity, only that we do accept
the responsibility. I, and
many fellow Oregonians,
choose to take responsibil-
ity by serving in the armed
forces. We serve our nation,
states, and communities in
times of war, in times of
natural disaster, and civil
strife.
Others may choose a dif-
ferent path to follow in an
effort to sustain our liber-
ties. It matters not what path
is taken only that we make
the conscious decision to
take the steps and stay the
course.
Thomas Paine wrote,
<Those who expect to reap
the blessings of freedom
must undergo the fatigue
of supporting it.= The vet-
eran has chosen to fight to
secure freedom, however
its maintenance is a shared
community responsibility
in which every citizen must
participate.
We must personally
sacrifice, by engaging in
and supporting community
activities if we are to main-
tain our freedoms. In light
of this country9s current
circumstances I believe it9s
time for everyone to make
a commitment to take per-
sonal responsibility, make
sacrifices to help develop
our communities9 health and
sustain their well-being.
In doing so we take up
the quarrel with the foe, the
foe of indifference, the foe
of ignorance, the foe of apa-
thy and neglect. In effect we
take up the torch dropped
on Flanders Fields, dropped
on the sands of Iwo Jima,
dropped in the jungles of
Vietnam and in the deserts
of Iraq by those who gave
their full measure so that we
should remain free.
If we accept the mantle
of responsibility and sacri-
fice just a little, the fallen
will continue to sleep where
poppies grow.