"An Act of Congress approved May 13, 1938, made the 11th of November in each year a legal holiday - - a day to be dedicated to the cause of world peace...
A celebration to honor America's veterans for their patriotism, love of country, and willingness to serve and sacrifice for the common good."
From the history of Veterans Day on va.gov.
There are many stories, letters and interviews with veterans at the Library of Congress Veterans History Project. A project established by Congress in 2000 to collect memories of veterans of all modern day wars in which Americans have served.
I've been watching the video interviews with Senator John S. McCain.
I found the video titled "The Inspiration For Whom The Bell Tolls" to be particularly moving.
In the interview, John McCain, speaking of heroes, says of Robert Jordan, Hemingway's hero in "For Whom the Bell Tolls" -
"He was dedicated, selfless, brave, capable, - but also stoic, he recognized the cause he served was flawed but he still served it to the point that he was willing to sacrifice his very life."
Robert Jordan, Hemingway's hero, final words are,
"The world is a fine place and worth the fighting for and I'll hate very much to leave it."
John McCain, when asked, "What is your idea of honor?" replies,
"My idea of honor is to serve a cause greater than your self-interest."
He goes on to say,
"There's lots of good causes. You can serve them in many ways. You don't have to serve them in the Spanish Civil war as Robert Jordan did. You can serve them in your own community and even in your own home."
For the Children
The rising hills, the slopes,
of statistics
lie before us.
the steep climb
of everything, going up,
up, as we all
go down.
In the next century
or the one beyond that,
they say,
are valleys, pastures,
we can meet there in peace
if we make it.
To climb these coming crests
one word to you, to
you and your children:
stay together
learn the flowers
go light
~ Gary Snyder ~
(Turtle Island)
