Micheline's Put-in
 
Remembering Remembrance Day
At 11am, on November 11th, for the first time in my life, I stopped what I was doing, heard the first cannon shot over the radio and for two minutes, sat and thought about all those men and woman who risked their lives for the sake of our country. My awakening was brought about by the likes of two radio personalities Terry Dimonte and Ted Byrd from CHOM FM, Montreal.
It all began one October morning while I was listening to the radio and they were discussing how appalling they thought it was that Ikea was not allowing the Vets to set up a table in order to sell their poppies this year, the store would only have room for the people at UNICEF. Ted was more demonstrative, displaying disgust and disdain towards the Swedish Company.
Though the announcement had struck me, the news was soon forgotten. However, a few days later I was quickly reminded when the same announcers were discussing how the CIBC bank was jumping on the "no poppies selling" band wagon. Now I was beginning to get quite upset. Ted was furious and encouraging listeners to withdraw their visa accounts (as he did). "What the hell is going on" I thought. As Terry and Ted were pointing out, the nation seems to have forgotten that without these people (the Vets) our country would not be what it is today…free and prosperous. It is at this point where I began to reflect on my own thoughts towards the various wars and the people who fought in them.
At 39 years old, I only had one perspective towards war: unnecessary violence; grown men feeling the need to "duke things out" as opposed to sitting down and negotiating rationally. How idealistic and naive I was. Even after reading books on the topic, seen various documentaries, I still perceived wars to be senseless and refused to recognize anyone who participated in them. At one particular point in my life I was obsessed with WWII. I could not understand the mass of destruction being brought on by one man. And yet, I could not support the fighting it took to bring Hitler and his ideology down.
Suddenly, hearing about these various corporations who had chosen not to support the Vets helped me see otherwise. More so, it was Terry and Ted's ranting and raving that brought it all to light.
It is now early November and my friend and I were in a shopping mall. We spotted two Vets at a table selling poppies. I thought to myself this is where I can begin to redeem myself. As if he heard my thoughts, my friend began guiding me to their table stating "we can't NOT stop". The men greeted us with bright, cheery smiles. I began discussing the IKEA and CIBC incidences with one of the two men. He was neither bitter or angry. He appeared to accept it as a part of life. I never asked him where he fought or what he had done in terms of service. I didn't need to know. The way he stood proud in his uniform sporting a few badges was enough for me. I made sure to catch his eyes when I said to him from the bottom of my heart, "Thank you".
Though I still have difficulty accepting war and all the destruction it brings, I do understand that in order to keep peace, we sometimes must fight fire with fire. More specifically, many men and women risked their lives so that mine and yours could be what it is today. I, for one, am forever grateful.
© Micheline's Put-In
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