We recently commemorated the 80th anniversary of the D-Day. The significance of that day, 6th June 1944, cannot be understated, when the largest seaborn invasion in history started the liberation of France and eventual victory of the Allied forces in the Second World War. World leaders gathered in Normandy to pay tribute to the soldiers that gave their lives in the service of their respective nations and paid the ultimate price for the privilege of fighting for their countries.
America was front and center on the D-Day, and America was front and center during the commemoration ceremonies. No matter what your politics maybe, President Biden was undeniably our representative on that stage and his words were the words of our nation. When he spoke, it was America that was speaking through him, and what he said in his speech, were the sentiments of each and every one of us. As always, democracy and freedom were the trending concepts.
Along with the President of the United States, were many other leaders who all together showcased the mightiest of the nations on this earth. As spectacular as the gathering of these personalities was, it was significantly overshadowed by the presence of real, actual Veterans of the actual D-Day, who participated in the landing at the beaches of Normandy 8 decades ago. Many have lived for over or close to 100 years. Most of us don’t have any idea as to what these men went through and what their determination accomplished. Most of us can’t even imagine being in their shoes, putting their lives on the line, and walking through that hail of bullets to achieve what must have seemed impossible.
As I watched some of the ceremonies, there were videos of D-Day landing playing on a loop. I was able to feel the shadow of death spread over the entire operation. There was an eerie and ominous filter on the camera that captured, what Hemmingway described as the “…death being issued in small, intimate, accurately administered packages.” As the soldiers disembarked from their boats and made a run to the land, I could see the bullets welcoming their onslaught. A soldier stepped out of the water and fell to the ground, face down onto the wet sand, never to rise again. I couldn’t take my eyes off of that “heavily laden bundle”, as there were thousands more similar bundles falling all around.
I dare not even think of what must have been going through the minds of those that kept charging, fully aware that the next bullet may have their name written on it. They were ready and willing to embrace death, but their mission must be completed. They were young men, same age as my sons who are serving this nation right now, with the same oath to defend this country, as these bravest of the brave men served their county. I dare not imagine what it feels like to know with complete certainty that the next breath you take, will most likely be your last.
But, there they were, those heroes, present during the ceremonies, dwarfing the rest of the world with their larger than life personas, smiling, saluting, and saying words of encouragement to the rest of us little people who take so many things for granted. These men set the course for the United States to become the quintessential superpower of our day. These men defined what it means to be free, because it was their courage that set the line that no enemy of ours has been able to cross and attack us in our own homeland.
As President Biden said in his speech, “These men knew that there are things worth fighting, and dying for.” I was humbled by their strength, even though most were in wheelchairs, pushed by their helpers, feeble as the time has taken its toll on their bodies. Death will eventually come, but on that day, they willingly went looking for death, and in front of their determination, death was hiding from them.
They are the true heroes, the ones that died are bigger heroes, more so than the ones that lived, but heroes nevertheless. Their willingness to give their lives, and in many cases, to actually give their lives, for this nation, is the epitome of patriotism. True patriotism, not just giving lip service to the idea and taking credit for superficial acts that, by any definition, are actually cowardly acts.
