Drew just got home Thursday morning and on Friday evening received a call to go into work this weekend. It’s not normal for weekend work without an explanation so when the call came in and no reason was given (ie weekend flights or disabled choppers) it put the two of us in a slightly uneasy mood.

Drew is still at work and now I’m back in hurry up and wait mode. Hopefully he’ll be home with news soon.

My imagination is busy developing a number of worst case scenarios while I wait. I’m hoping the lack of explanation is just an oversight on the part of the Sergeant when he called.

I arrived at the airport to pick up Drew with 20 minutes to spare according to the original flight details. Upon arrival at the airport I learned the flight was delayed by an hour and a half. Of course I’d checked the flight status before I left the house but it’s an hour long drive to the airport from home – there’s nothing like having an international airport named after your city that’s located FAR ouside city limits – and the flight delay was posted after I’d left the house.

So Drew will arrive home around one am. With the time zone jumping that will be three am for him. Guess the night blind freak is driving home after all.

If I’d been smart I would have thought to book us into a room at one of the airport hotels. Foresight is apparently not one of my strengths outside of a work environment.

Thank goodness for Timmy’s. While I wait I can load myself up on coffee and try to learn to block out smells while I breathe. The young man on my left is eating very stinky Doritos and the older man on my right is reading “les maths pour les nulls”. I am experiencing flashbacks to jr high math class as I type. I wonder if anyone has managed to get a PTSD diagnosis due to school related trauma.

Once again the iPhone keeps me occupied. Between short tweets and visits to Facebook I am reading one of the books in Kim Harrison’s Rachel Morgan series. Had I the foresight to brim earbuds with me I could have been listening to music while reading my ebook. And of course it allows me to blog in an attempt to make the time pass quicker.

Once again the military spouse practices her waiting skills. Soon. It’ll all be worth it. Sleep well everyone.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old: Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn. At the going down of the sun and in the morning We will remember them.– excerpt from For The Fallen, Laurence Binyon

In recent years there have been some discussions surrounding whether or not war is ever justified and if Canada should be shifting it’s focus away from combat missions and moving towards revamping our military to solely support peacekeeping and humanitarian aid roles. Thomas Aquinas’ Summa Theologica: Whether it is always sinful to wage war? says:

Those who wage war justly aim at peace, and so they are not opposed to peace, except to the evil peace…We do not seek peace in order to be at war, but we go to war that we may have peace.

I don’t believe in war for the sake of war, dominance or economics. I do believe that true evil exists and must be fought when encountered. I’d like to think I judge each mission the Canadian Forces are involved in on their own merit. Many wars have been fought during the course of human history. Many have faded to memory. A few, such as the first and second world wars will likely do the same as the few remaining survivors of war’s horror slowly fade to dust. If we are to learn from history and move forward, we must never forget our past. I worry many days that we are heading in that direction – forgetting the sacrifices of those who fought for freedom from tyranny. Each year, fewer and fewer of those who fought during WWI and WWII remain alive. Fewer people attend Remembrance Day ceremonies and sport poppies. Please take a moment to attend Remembrance Day ceremonies in your local area. Visit a local Legion and spend time with our veterans. If you’re unable to attend ceremonies at a local cenotaph please observe two minutes silence at 11:00am. You can also spend some time visiting the following sites:

• Canoe.ca – Remembrance Day: Why The Poppy?
• Terry Kelly – Pittance of Time
• Shawn Hlookoff – Soldier
• Dr. Sam – Before you go
• Judy Small – Mothers, Daughters, Wives
• Eric Bogle – Green Fields of France
• John McCrae – In Flander’s Fields

For those who have served and fallen – both during their service or after retirement – take a moment to remember their sacrifice.

Dona Nobis Pacem

For the past few years Mimi has sponsored the Blog Blast for Peace.  My past globes and comments are here and here. This year I take comfort from the symbolic repatriation of Canadian soldiers who fought and died in WWI. We should never forget the sacrifice of those who have gone before us and whose efforts have helped build the world we live in today.  With Remembrance Day just around the corner and the ranks of veterans who carry the memories forward growing thinner each year, it is especially important to acknowledge the message they have worked so hard to promote – Never Again.

An odd message to appear on the blog of a soldier’s wife.  However, as I’m sure many past soldiers also believed, he and many current serving military members still hold fast to the belief that they fight so that future generations will not have to. The things we take for granted here – ample food, fresh drinking water, basic literacy skills, freedom to worship in a religion of choice, freedom of expression, etc. – are still lacking in so many places.  So much still needs to be done.

Two nights ago we bore witness to change in the Western world.  The first non-white President was elected in the United States of America.  This action has fostered great excitement and placed a huge weight upon Mr. Obama’s shoulders.  Let’s hope he is up to the challenge.

There is still much that needs to change in the world.  While the US was willing to accept a non-white President, gay marriage bans were passed in California, Florida and Arizona.  People continue to be held back by the unwillingness of others to embrace love and change and to accept others for who they are, not who others think they should be.  Families are still struggling to make ends meet and curable or controllable disease still runs rampant in many parts of the world.  Women still struggle to be considered equal.

We continue to hope.