To Remember

Today is June 6. For a rapidly diminishing generation, this day is burned into their psyche. It is of course the 63rd anniversary of D-Day. For years, Charles Schulz would publish a strip on June 6 to commemorate the anniversary. His two simple words, "To Remember."

I read today in the Washington Post, on the editorial page, A Note on D-Day. It is particularly appropriate to use this day to recall the acts of American soldiers and the general that led them into the greatest invasion ever undertaken.

The day before D-Day, General Dwight D. Eisenhower wrote a note to be read in the event the invasion failed and placed it in his wallet. It read,

"Our landings in the Cherbourg-Havre area have failed to gain a satisfactory foothold and I have withdrawn the troops. My decision to attack at this time and place was based on the best information available. The troops, the air and the Navy did all that bravery and devotion to duty could do. If any blame or fault attaches to the attempt it is mine alone."

As the Post notes, Eisenhower's words are about more than warfare, "it speaks to the responsibility of all who would order the affairs of others, then and now." One wonders if anyone carries similar words in their wallets today. I'm guessing no.