I always struggle when trying to think up something to say when reflecting on Remembrance Day. Not having served in the military, and having been born into a family that has remained mostly untouched by the losses that attend war, it’s…difficult to get into a frame of mind that is open to adequate understanding of the depths of the sacrifices that our uniformed men and women are called to make.

That said, I think this encapsulates it rather handily, without seeming to do so at first. Because Remembrance Day isn’t so much about these moments, delightful as they are, but about the opposite…about the people that don’t come home, don’t surprise friends, family, and even pets, and don’t trigger such eruptions of spontaneous joy. And those losses, collectively, have in some way brought us — those who didn’t serve and/or whose families didn’t experience those same losses — to where we are today, enjoying the lives and freedoms that we do.

By the way…if you get past #7 in that list without shedding a tear, you’re a heartless monster. Just saying.

(Image credit: Ottawa Citizen)