After mulling it over for a couple of weeks, the Board of Education recently decided to hold school on Veterans Day next year. It took a 4-3 vote to make the call.
Now I don’t fault the school board members who voted to hold classes. They said there would be a concerted effort to use the time to teach students about what we all owe to our veterans. That’s probably better in many ways than just ignoring the day, like usual.
On the other hand, anyone who reads this week’s stunning Newsweek issue — which, for my money, is mandatory for all of us — can’t help feeling that what we owe these men and women goes far beyond a little classroom time. They’re fighting and dying even now, for our country, our freedom, us. The cause may not be worth the sacrifice, but the honor due to those who have answered the call is beyond calculation.
What ought to happen on Veterans Day is for everyone, from kindergarten to nursing home, to take time out to honor our warriors, past and present, and to thank them for making our nation strong, free and safe. A day off from school is a tiny price to pay for so much toil and blood.
The West Hartford Blog 