Today is a very important day to my family. Today is November 11th and it is the official end of World War One and World War Two. Today, World War Two is only something that we know about in the textbooks in our World History class. But it is also a time in history that was not so long ago. And there are people today who remember and lived at that time.

Today is called Remembrance Day.

This is the day we remember the past. This is the day we remember the young men who were in the army in Europe in World War One and World War Two. This is the day that we remember that they fought so hard so the West could be free. So many people were killed in World War One, and in World War Two. In America they call this Veterans Day.

This is the day that we remember the soldiers who died so that we could live in freedom. To my family it is the most important holiday of the year.

Remembrance Day is a day we keep for the soldiers of the past. The countries that participate in these kinds of ceremonies are: Canada, Australia, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, India, Kenya, New Zealand, France, Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Israel, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Russia, Serbia, and the United States.

My family lived in the Netherlands during World War Two and the German army came to their village. The Germans took everything and killed a lot of people. Some of my uncles could escape and fight from the forest at night. But it was very dangerous and very scary for them. A few years later the Canadian army came with other countries to make my family free. After the war, my family moved to Canada, and I was born there.

My family will always remember the brave Canadians that fought for the Netherlands. We can never pay them in return, but now that I am a Canadian I think I must do my best in the world to help other people, and to teach English the best way I can.

We are very lucky today to have no war in our lives. Japan and Canada are peaceful places, and we do not worry about guns and bombs. We do not worry about our homes that are destroyed by another army. We also do not need to become soldiers to fight in another country. We can live in peace, and study, and learn, and enjoy so much.

In Japan and in Canada we have army soldiers who serve and protect our countries. When there is trouble, like heavy snow, or earthquake, they are the first to begin to help and save people. The army goes into dangerous places to save people, or into dangerous countries to stop dangerous leaders. Maybe they will get hurt. Maybe they will get killed. But they fight hard anyway. They fight for their people. They fight for their country. They fight for you and they fight for me.

We need to remember the past and remember history. But we also need to remember the people who help and serve our communities, our cities, our regions, and our families.

If we can remember the past, we can learn from that, and change bad patterns we see today. If we remember the past, we can design and develop a better future. Knowing our history, and the people who lived before us is very valuable and important.

So, let’s remember November 11th. Thank you to the military of both Japan and Canada. Thank you for serving our people, and helping to keep us safe. We need to remember to be grateful for today, just like we need to remember the past.