Veterans: I couldn't have done what so many have

Today I am grateful for steady feet on icy walkways. I am also grateful for the excitement of new experiences. 

Today is Veteran's Day in the United States. We have over 17.4 million veterans in our country now, and over 360,000 veterans in Minnesota.  Thanks to my co-worker Erin, a veteran herself, for providing us these statistics and more on the history of this special day:

*Armistice Day (now Veteran's Day) was celebrated to remember World War One on the anniversary of signing the peace agreement.

*The world had never before seen such a dramatic loss of life and widespread violence.

*Memorials became common in almost every country in the world to remember the people lost in the conflict.

*Poppies are a common symbol of Veterans Day and were popularized in the poem, “In Flanders Field.”

Thank you Erin, Keegan, Alex, and all who have served or are currently serving to protect our country and the democracy and freedoms that have become so strikingly apparent and important in recent days, months, and years.

I couldn't have done what so many have done to protect and preserve. I owe a debt of gratitude so large I can never repay it, but I can offer regular thanks by being an informed, respectful, and participatory citizen myself. It's the least I can do.