Seventy years is but a blink of an eye in the passing of history but for man it is a lifetime. Seventy years ago today many young American men and woman saw the horrors of war first hand. Seventy years ago today 2,403 Americans were killed on what by all accounts started as a peaceful Hawaiian Sunday morning at Pearl Harbor.
Seventy years has passed but the memory of the 1,177 men on the USS Arizona has not faded. They were not alone that day, in all 2,403 men and woman including 68 civilians were killed and 1,178 were injured. War does not distinguish between military and civilians. War is an ultimate battle with the death of you opponent as your goal. It is harsh, it is real and it is final for far too many.
Today we remember and pay tribute to those men and women that were suddenly and without warning attacked on that peaceful Sunday morning. It is a rainy day today, a reminder of the tears shed by loved ones when the news reached home their sons and daughters would never return.
The attack was short but the results were devastating and the carnage should never be forgotten. Young lives ended, dreams shattered, it has been seventy years and still we remember. These were young men and women that never had the joy of seeing their children grow, never lived their dreams and never had a chance to say, good bye.
Seventy years has come and gone, we have seen the ravages of war. We have faced our enemies, we have sacrificed our sons and daughters, and we have paid a price for freedom and liberty. We can not abandon our dreams, we can not falter in our defense, and we can not forget the price we have paid.
December 7, 1941 is only a date the importance is our memory, a recollection of that moment in time for the men and women that found that day to be their last. May they rest in peace and may their sacrifice never be forgotten by this nation, lest we pay the price again.
A moment of silence, please…….
