History redux II
Tonight brought the second portion of The Great War on CBC. I watched it with my youngest son, and I believe it did what the producer intended; it inspired questions and reflection.
My own generation has lived free of war, unlike those before or the present group of youth. I never “did duty”, although I certainly spent time digging through piles of war surplus materials. I never had to carry arms, thank God. May my sons be as fortunate. My son wanted to know, though, if any of our ancestors had gone to war. My figures are approximations, but I do know some of the story.
My paternal grandfather did not go overseas, although the majority of his brothers saw service with the 105th from the Island. Similarly, my maternal grandfather was too young, but his brothers went away, and one died in WW2 after being on a torpedoed ship. My father and mother both did reserve service, and a number of my uncles were “reg forces”, although not in combat roles. Altogether, more military service than I might have estimated. I did not grow up in a bellicose environment.
The program tonight pointed out that the Canadian contingent were not “professionals”; rather, they were quickly trained, handed rifles and sent off for four years of proximity to Hell. In my generation, we did our four years of coming of age on university campus. All the difference.
My role, now, is to remember. In passing, what was I supposed to remember when I was shown those scenes with Justin Trudeau paddling around in a canoe? Oh, yes.
