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November 10, 2012

Remembrance Day 2012 edition of Saturday Snapshots







{Snapped at Maupertuis Airfield, France, this photo shows Lt. Col. Oris B. Johnson standing in cockpit of a plane with an eye-catching nose art design that says "No love! No nothing", though somehow I doubt that was entirely true of a man such as in uniform.}




{In this image from February of 1944 we see a Canadian solider on leave back in Canada standing with his wife two young children in Hamilton, Ontario. I can't help but think how bitter sweet times like this must have been for families, who, while elated to see their son/husband/father again, were also stricken with worry over the fact that they'd soon be returning to active duty.}




{Integral to the war effort back home, thousands upon thousands of women - such as this 1942 trio who are diligently working on the front end of fighter plane - took part in military related factory work during WW2.}
 



{A young sailor poses with a little girl in this sweet image. Given that the chap scarcely looks like he's out of boyhood himself, I suspect the girl was likely his sister or perhaps a cousin, not his own daughter. Whatever their relation to one another, they certainly make for a heartwarming pair.}




{Though time has had its way with the colours in this shot, the image itself is still in tact and one can instantly spot that this man, identified as Lt. Edward William Gibbons, is recovering from an injury - a bullet wound, the Flickr poster tells us – obtained in battle.}




{Payday on a Navy cruiser - though one cannot put a price on the incredibly hard work and ceaseless courage of those who served during the war, military personnel of course received a regular salary, much of which many of them often sent back home to help support loved ones during their absence.}




{Whether on the home front or abroad with the troops, nurses - such as this young woman hard at work at the Baxter Lab in Glenview, Ill. - played an invaluable role in the war effort of both the Great War and WW2.}




{While there is, unequivocally, nothing glamorous about war, that doesn't that women during the war years were restricted from looking as glam and gorgeous as all get out - even with rations on everything from stockings to rubber swimming caps. Case in point, these two curly haired 1940s lasses and their equally sharp looking Navy beaus.}




{Three female factory workers drilling a wing bulkhead for a transport plane at the Consolidated Aircraft Corporation plant, Fort Worth, Texas during October of 1942. I love that even though one, of course, had to adhere to strict clothing/uniform regulations for the sake safety, women still found little ways to inject style and a sense of femininity into their outfits - such as the gal in the middle with her cute hair bow.}



{Whether before being deployed, during the war (such as when home on leave), or immediately afterwards, thousands of couples (such as this handsome pair from 1945) made a point of tying the knot while one - or both - of them was on active military duty, even with the worrisome uncertainty that the future held in store. }



{All images above are from Flickr. To learn more about a specific image, 
please click on it to be taken to its respective Flickr page.}



♥ ♥ ♥



Firmly, adamantly, and with great conviction, I believe in peace. Yet, it would be foolhardy and naive to say that that there are not times when war may become necessary. This is not a pretty thought. It is a harsh truth, and though (I feel) far too many nations have rushed into war needlessly, there have been times when the fate of a nation - if not humanity - as a whole called for great men and women to defend the rights, freedoms, and very existence of our species.

The twentieth century was plagued by wars both big and small, and few places on the globe remained truly untouched by the effects of these horrific battles. One might have thought that the First World War, the so-called war to end all wars, would live up to its nickname, but tragically, it did not, and just a couple of decades later, huge chunks of the planet once again saw battle and bloodshed of an almost unimaginably awful magnitude.

Like many people today, I have relatives (one of my paternal great-grandfathers and his brother) who fought in WW2. Both men were in the Canadian Military, however unlike many of their brothers-in-arms, these two had been born in Germany, immigrating to Canada, and becoming Canadians, with their paraents when they were young boys.

Little was ever spoken about my great-grandfather, who passed long before I was born, or of his time in the service. I have no idea how he felt about the war as a whole, if part of him was torn between his homeland and the adopted country for which he was defending, nor if ever thought about how likely it would have been that he'd have ended up fighting for Germany if he had grown up there instead on Canadian soil.

I wish he was still here today so I could talk to him about all of these things and many more, but he's long gone and no one else ever seemed to ask such things, so responses to these questions- much like that of why humans still feel compelled to start wars at - remain largely unanswered.

What I do know is that war changed him, and that, like so many who had experienced life in the thick of the battle, his character was forever altered (and not for the better) by what he had witnessed, carried out, and survived. The same was true for countless other soldiers and civilians alike on both sides. It always is. Times and reasons by change, but ultimately the events and repercussions of war remain the same.

Tomorrow, November 11th, is Remembrance Day, a solemn, dignified time in which we reflect back on all those who fought - whether, like my great-grandpa they came home again to waiting loved ones, or like his brother, they became a memory while on the battlefield - and served our country so that we, and all those innocent civilians in other countries, too, could once again know freedom and peace.

I can never thank these brave men and women enough. I have had the profound honour of experiencing peace firsthand my whole life in very large part because of the valiant efforts, unyielding courage, and the fact that they knew that sometimes you have fight in the name of all that you believe is right, in order to achieve it.

29 comments:

  1. OH MY! what great photos!!
    *wolf whistle* the navy payday photo
    and how sweet the honeymoon one!!
    xx

    www.desdemonavintage.blogspot.com

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  2. Great photo, my favorite are always of the "regular" people over models or starlets.

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    1. I am the exact same way, Trina. While I certainly adore and have drawn plenty of inspiration from vintae celebrities over the years, it's always that snapshots of real world ladies like us that I garner the very most from.

      ♥ Jessica

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  3. What a lovely post! I particularly like the photo of the young family in Hamilton (I live there). I, too, have many family members to thank and remember tomorrow. From the Canadian Armed Forces, to the Royal Navy, to the American Navy and the Pentagon, my family stretches over 2 continents and service is a tradition for several generations.

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  4. Oh Jessica you have such a wonderful and beautiful collection of photos. I love all the ones of women in service. They looked so lovely and we giving their all.
    Peace is something we always strive for but unfortunately there are those who thrive on the conflict and chaos that wars (big and small) cause. Even the small wars that go on in homes cause irreparable damage. Sometimes the only way to be free and peaceful is to get rid of the things that hurt you the most.

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    1. Eloquently, beautifully said thoughts about peace (be it on a global level or in one's own life), my dear. I completely agree.

      ♥ Jessica

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  5. Jessica my Grandfather was in Brittany in WWI and was wounded in action. He was taken to a military base hospital but the buildings which had been commandeered were full so Grampa was left on a stretcher outside in the drizzling rain. An Army doctor came around with some volunteer nurses from England (one would become my Grandmother) and said 'Give him a beer he is going to die anyway'. Several hours later the doctor and his entourage (and of course my Nanny) came back and Grampa was still alive so the doctor said 'Looks like I was wrong so we better operate". The rest is (our) history. Most Aussie families have been touched by at least one of the wars. ANZAC Day and Remembrance Day are an integral part of Australia.
    "Lest We Forget"

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    1. Thank you very much for sharing this remarkable story with us, dear lady. Thank goodness your grandpa pulled through - it's amazing to think, isn't it, how easily it could have been for either one of us to have never been born if our respective ancestors had passed away in the war. It really drives home the fragility of life and how incredibly lucky we all are to be here.

      ♥ Jessica

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  6. I think these are my favorite photos that you have posted so far. I adore the couple with the babies-I often wonder too how did these women keep it alo together while their men were away. I would have lost my marbles not having my hubby with me. And my other favorite is of the two women who are with their beaus-they were all dolled up and I loved that.

    Thats interesting that your great-grandfather was in the war. I wish my grandpa was around for me to ask questions as well. He passed away youngish still, in his 60s when I was 17. But what I do know makes me SO proud-he had a purple heart! xox

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    1. Thank you very much, honey, both for your lovely comment and for sharing about your grandfather with me (us). I'm sorry that he was passed away before you got to ask him much about his experiences with the war.

      Saturday Snapshot posts are always amongst my favourite ongoing posts here, and I have to say, this particular set is definitely one of the most memorable and meaningful for me, too.

      ♥ Jessica

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  7. WWII snapshots are never enought for me!
    Wishing you a marvelous weekend, dear Jess!

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  8. I know what you mean. I believe in necessary wars, like the for me both my country's revolution and civil war were necessary. And I feel WWII was as well, growing up reading about the holocaust, if the allies didn't do something think of how many other victims Hitler would have murdered.

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  9. Beautifully put. I am writing this while watching the Remembrance Concert at the Royal Albert Hall as I do every year, and the bravery, selflessness, and humour of those who fight for us - past and present - is a very humbling thing.

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  10. You have selected some beautiful photos for this post, Jessica. All of them evoke the well-known feeling that "freedom isn't free."

    Like you, I am thankful for the thousands of men and women who served---sometime paying the ultimate price---so that I might live in freedom. We owe those veterans a great debt...which we can never repay.

    If I could talk to one dead person for a day, like you, it would be one of my great-grandfathers. As I have been doing my genealogy, I have discovered many mysteries in one branch of the family, and a day spent with him might go a long way towards getting some answers.

    Thank you for the lovely email. I will write back as soon as I can.

    Love,
    Patti

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  11. Beautifully written, Jessica. Personally I chose the white poppy over the red one, but I definitely see your argument that sometimes war is necessary. It's a very controversial topic, at least to me, since I have personal experiences connected to war (in Yugoslavia). Anyhow, it's important that we remember how lucky we are to be living in freedom and in a democracy.

    On a different note: have you seen Bomb girls?? Fantastic TV show. I am hoping and praying there will be a season 2!! http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1955311/

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    1. Thank you very much, honey. Please don't misconstrue my position, at heart I am a pacifist and do believe that peace should be striven for whenever possible. Far too many wars have been waged needlessly and for the very worst kinds of reasons. I'm deeply sorry that you've had first hand experience with war, and hope with all my heart and soul that you never have to condend with such nightmarish strife again.

      Bomb Girls is terrific! Yes, spurred on by some of our fellow vintage bloggers, I started watching it and have caught two episodes (so far) over the past few months. I don't watch that much TV, but am definitely trying to catch more episodes and also hope that Bomb Girls will keep going for multiple seasons.

      ♥ Jessica

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  12. A great set of photos - I love the one of the young sailor and the little girl. It shows the difference in our ages - it was your gt grandfather and gt gt uncle who served in WW2, in my case it was my father and uncles! Sadly women in the UK had a much harder time looking glamorous than the women in Canada and the US as so many things were rationed and often completely unattainable over here and clothing required coupons which even at best only allowed one new outfit a year. Knicker elastic and bobby pins were like gold dust:) Hats and lipstick were never on ration though as they were considered to be morale boosters.

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  13. Wonderful images. It must have been so difficult for your German ancestors; what a dreadful conflict of interests. It almost seems cruel that they had to be involved.

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    1. Thank you very much, dear Tracey, you're such an empathetic person. Though I suspect that my great-grandpa and his brother would have firmly supported the Allie's stance (especially since they were Canadian soldiers), it truly could not have been easy for them or the many other men and women of direct German origin who found themselves in the same kind of situation.

      ♥ Jessica

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  14. Thank you, Jessica. Lovely photos, and I like you shared your opinion. I think I'm happy: my grandfather, who took part in WW2, is still alive. He is 87, and I've talked to him many times about that time. And of course, here in form USSR, were really bitter times. Thanks God it's all finished. I vote for piece.

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    1. Truly, thank goodness that such a horrific war is over - let us hope and do everything we possibly can to somehow create world peace one day. For while I may understand the reasons why can become necessary sometimes, I am not in favour of it and wish for world peace every single day.

      Thank you for sharing about your grandfather with me, he sounds like a great man who has lived a challenging, remarkable life. Please give him my greetings from Canada the next time you talk (BTW, I'm Russian on my paternal grandfather's side).

      ♥ Jessica

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  15. This was a really beautiful post. The photos were amazing, and what you wrote was very touching.
    My grandfather fought in the war as well, although at the time he was living in Europe (he was Czechoslovakian). I have heard some stories, but it is hard to imagine what he and my grandmother went through during those horrible times.

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  16. Very touching post on all those who fought for our freedoms, that many today take for granted. Happy Remembrance Day or Veteran's Day here in the US.

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  17. oh, wow ... great post again. not just amazing pictures, i love to read about the history behind those photos. thanks.

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  18. Well done! Really excellent sentiment expressed by you and by your readers' comments! And as usual, terrific photos put together to tell such great stories...and a great reminder for all of us to thank our veterans for their service. A truly lovely post.

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  19. This is wonderful, Jessica. Thank you so much for these photos and this beautifully written post! You put into words everything i feel about this holiday. A true day of remembrance and respect. :)

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  20. Beautiful photos but somehow I get that little awkward feeling thinking about the history around them. The pain and suffering of the men and the worry of the women not knowing if their husbands, fathers or spouses will return home again.

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  21. It's so sad when relative pass before we get a chance to know them properly.....or to know what questions to ask in order to know them properly. My great grandmother was lived in Hungary during WW2 and she brought up four small children on her own whilst her husband went off to fight. We didn't know too much about these times. I do remember one story she told of always being bombed around dinner time and having to leave dinner on the stove to go and take cover...this happened for many nights in a row. There was never any damage to the house afterwards and dinner would be spoiled and the children went hungry. So one night she refused to leave when the warnings went off at dinner time. She sent the children to shelter and stayed with the dinner...of course they were bombed that night and she barely escaped with her life from the destroyed house. She had so much pluck! I wish I had known to ask her more of her experiences, but I was too young to know. xxx Shauna

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