By Julianna Duerksen

For the past six months, my husband and I have been on a D-Day kick. We’ve watched documentaries, read first-hand accounts, and listened to countless podcasts interviewing the men who landed on the beaches. The men are as varied as the stories they tell — some were clueless, having no idea where they were or what was going on the entire time. Others, in equally disjointing circumstances, rose to the occasion as leaders and heroes. Some are gentlemen, others crass, as only the army can make one. Some were believers, many definitely were not. 

But throughout the various accounts of crisis and heroism, one theme clearly emerges. Each hero of that “greatest generation” understood the cost of freedom. And they were more than willing to pay for it. These were men who didn’t wait to get drafted. They were the first to enlist (even if that took some finagling with age or weight to get in!). They grew up in an age in America when duty to God, family, and country was deeply impressed upon them. 

Two generations later, we’ve grown lax. As a society, we nod to their sacrifice on Veteran’s Day while forgetting that freedom requires sacrifice of every generation. It’s not a once and done deal.