Veteran's Day

In honor of all veterans of U.S. armed service this week, a history lesson. The poppy has been the flower of Veteran's Day in the west because of a popular poem written in 1919, amid the poppy-covered battlefields and cemeteries of Flanders, Belgium. While the poppy is a symbol of those lost in the battles which created our honorable vet population, this poem speaks of their duty in a unique way. When I think of Veteran's day, I think of thanking the living for their service, but if you're a veteran of war, you probably thank those who passed the torch to you as well. Today, I am grateful for courageous men and women.
To all who have served:

In Flanders Fields by John McRae

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.