We Are Thankful

Today, we celebrate veterans for their patriotism, love of country and willingness to serve and sacrifice for the common good. In the U.S., we observe Veterans Day on November 11, as does France, Great Britain, Australia and Canada. Here's a poem written against the backdrop of Flanders Field (the name of World War I battlefields in the medieval County of Flanders, which spans southern Belgium and north-west France):

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.