Veterans Day

Big Red here on this Veterans Day with a letter from little Danny DeLaney,

So, TAKE FIVE!

Dear Big Red,

"Pops is taking me to the Veterans cook out this upcoming Veterans Day and I wanted to ask you two questions. First I’m a little embarrassed to say that I don’t really understand the difference between Veterans Day and Memorial Day, could you explain? Secondly, at the cook out I will be with a lot of veterans and I want to thank them for their service but I am not really sure how to do it right, you know not being awkward and all?"

Thanks for your letter Danny and I'll do my best to give you good answers.

So, what is the difference between Memorial Day and Veterans Day?

Memorial Day is set aside as a time for Americans to remember all the men and women in uniform who died while in the service of our country.

Veterans Day is a day that Americans should honor all the men and women, both dead and alive, who have worn the uniform of our country in both time of war and time of peace.

WWI was so big and involved so many countries and people that it was believed to be the “war to end all wars”. The fighting stopped on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month of 1918 with an armistice. That means that all the countries fighting agreed to stop fighting on that day. The whole world recognized November 11^th as Armistice Day and remembered or celebrated in their own way. By the 1950s there had been another world war and countless smaller ones making it obvious that WWI was not “the war to end all wars”. American veterans asked the government to change the name of the day from Armistice to Veterans so all veterans of all service could be honored.

As for thanking a vet for their service, all I can do is tell you what I think.

Even though the reason we want to thank a veteran for their service comes from a place of respect, it is important to remember that sometimes the sacrifices made by those veterans are the really hard kind. On a day like Veterans Day, a veteran may be thinking about friends who died in combat or who have passed away over the years and they might not really want to be “thanked” for their service.

I believe it might be better to say something like “I appreciate your service”.

Well Danny that’s the best answer I can give you, hope it helps.

Have fun with Pops at the cook out and have a meaningful Veterans Day!