Remembrance Day

Today Taylor will be taking part with her Girl Guide unit, and other Guides in our division, in the Remembrance Day celebration at the mall. I think it is so important for our children to know the sacrifices that were made for them by these brave men and women. It's important that we attend these ceremonies since there are so few veterans left. It is the year of the veteran in Canada, and today I will remember two in particular.

My maternal grandfather was a member of the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire regiment and spent 3 years in Burma, the forgotten war. He doesn't really like to talk about those days. The only thing I know is that a Japanese soldier was about to shoot him when he himself was shot and killed. My grandad left the army in 1946, married my nan and had 3 girls. He is now living in the south of England, taking care of my nan who had a stroke 3 years ago. Taylor had the opportunity to meet him this summer and got on very well with him. They are very similar personalities, both very stubborn, opinionated and intelligent. I don't think Liam will be lucky enough to see him. Sad, that.

My paternal grandfather was in the RAF and was stationed in England. He managed to get home to Belfast quite often as my granny gave birth 4 times between 1940 and 1945. My mother often says that the only action my granda saw was a fight with a Canadian soldier. I don't know how true this is.I only knew my granda for just over a year. They moved to Canada when I was 7 and he died when I was 8, unfortunately I was too young to be interested in what I would have considered old war stories. A couple of years ago, I found out that he was actually jailed during the war for stealing arms and selling them to the IRA. Selling them, not giving them. He wasn't much of a nationalist. Strangely enough, he wasn't dishonourably discharged for this.

I will think of both my grandfathers today, even though one of them was far from the perfect soldier.