Remembering Values

As we approach November 11, I have been reflecting on the meaning of this day. I am privileged to be able to call myself a veteran from the Canadian Navy. And what I learned from my time in the navy four decades ago was how important it is to stand up for values.

Without strong uncompromising values, we are soon lost.

“We hang on to our values, even if they seem at times tarnished and worn; even if, as a nation and in our own lives, we have betrayed them more often that we care to remember. What else is there to guide us? Those values are our inheritance, what makes us who we are as a people.” ― Barack Obama, 

We are very privileged here in Canada where people across our long history have stood up with their lives to protect our values for the decency of  human condition, protection of democracy and our right to live in communities where we belong and know others care about us.

In recent years, these values have been under constant challenge. As we take a few minutes on November 11 to remember our current members serving in the armed forces, veterans and those who have given their lives for the protection of our values, perhaps we can also reflect on how we as individuals also stand up for these values.

There would be no greater honour to those who have sacrificed their lives than to stand up beside them with our own purposeful action. So as we remember, perhaps we can also remember our values as a nation and as a community and ask ourselves, ‘how do I stand up for these values?’