THIS
DAY WE
REMEMBER
DECEMBER 7, 1941
The radio crackles as Father adjusts the dial. Each member of the family leans closer, hushed and pale, as the well-known voice of President Roosevelt fills the room: “Yesterday, December 7, 1941—a date which will live in infamy—the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan. . . .”
In a single moment, on that sunny, bright Sunday morning, America was changed—forever.
Young Ernest ’Boots’ Thomas, just seventeen years of age, was diligently working toward his aeronautical engineering degree when that fateful day in 1941 arrived. For several weeks the young student strove to set aside the war that was tearing his country apart while he continued his studies. But, at last, he thrust his books hopelessly aside. “I can’t stand it any longer,” he told his mother. “I’ve got to go, even if I am only 17. I’ve got to fight.”
“I’ve got to fight.” No longer do his childhood dreams draw him away. No longer does a high-paying job and a comfortable living entice him. No; the time for such trifles has passed. At seventeen the young boy becomes a man, and lays all down—dreams, comforts, and life itself—for his family, his country, and his home.
December 7, 2014. Seventy-three years have passed us by. Over half a century now separates the young people of America from that fateful dawn of 1941.
“Grandpa, why is he holding the flag?” the child now asks. “Why aren’t they singing Christmas carols? It’s December, isn’t it? What’s Pearl Harbor? What’s it all about? I don’t understand.”
“I’ve got to fight.” The heart-cry of a young seventeen-year-old boy rings down through the ages. Will we remember him? Will we remember his life, and the lives of the countless thousands who gave their lives for us?
WILL WE REMEMBER?
Take a moment today. Talk with your children. Sit down with your grandchildren, and teach them the history of the day. Remember the men. Remember the lives. Tell the stories. Recount the history. Give thanks, and honor their memory.
Copyright 2014 Psalm 78 Ministries