November 11

On this day, I humbly offer a view from the Vimy Memorial in France, which was designed by the brilliant Canadian artist, Walter Seymour Allward.

On their website, Veterans Affairs Canada notes:

The Vimy Monument reveals Walter Allward as an emotional individual burdened by sadness and a deep sense of obligation to never forget those who had died so that the living may secure a better life.

His true genius was to draw meaning out of carnage, light from darkness, and to put into tangible form the depth of the sacrifice and the sense of loss felt by those who survived.

"Let it go out of your heart and into the stone."

Spoken by the character of Walter S. Allward in Jane Urquhart's Canadian best-selling novel, "The Stone Carvers".

Today, my life and my heart are full.

And I am so very, very thankful.