I began my walk to my class this morning at 7:20 am. It was cold, and my ears were freezing. I was frustrated with loads of homework, and I was upset with one of my roommates, I'm worried that a strange guy might like me, and I was just overall in a selfish, bad mood. As a walked, I noticed the presence of flags on nearly every property. Racking my memory, I realized that it was Veterans Day. As I continued on my trek across the campus to the far end, I was piecing together from my history classes the reasons of Veterans Day. November 11, 1918 marked the end of WWI. The armistice was signed at 11:00 (11/11 at 11 ) In France and many other countries, this day is remembered as Armistice Day. We changed it in this country after WWII. This day has become a day to remember and to honor all of those that fought in the military for our country. From the revolutionary war to the current war in Iraq, there have been millions of men (and more recently women) that have risked their lives, and many have given their lives to help protect their nation. My bad mood was forgotten as I turned my thoughts to my own relatives and ancestors that have fought in the military. I have a cousin that was killed in Iraq just a couple of years ago. I have a great uncle that was wounded in WWII, I have a distant ancestor that was a general in the American civil war. I have other relatives who were soldiers that fought under George Washington in the Revolution. Each and every soldier deserves recognition and thanks. I always like to include in these lists the other great war heroes that should deserve recognition, starting with Captain Moroni, Teancum, Mormon, and dozens of other good and righteous leaders. And then there is a whole other warfare going on. Right now there are over sixty-thousand missionaries all over the world that are fighting for good and for truth. These and all that have served missions, should get some sort of thanks. To carry this on, let's make mention of billions of more people that are unsung heroes in a sense. Police officers, fire fighters, teachers, leaders, mail carriers, farmers, scientists, engineers, medical personnel, janitors, grocery store baggers, and everyone else that give of their time and energy to help make the world run smoother. There are so many things that people do that are invaluable to society; we couldn't do without them. [Side note: Why is it that invaluable, and valuable mean exactly the same thing?] So basically, I'm just feeling grateful today. Thanks to all of you that do things that help out anyone in this world; Thanks to our military in particular today; and especially, Thanks to God for all that He does for all of us each and every day. Selfishness tends to put people in a bad mood, and gratitude helps to dissipate that. I'm not in a bad mood anymore . There is a song that I sang in choir in high school that I'd like to share the lyrics. They seem applicable.

Let us sing for unsung heroes,
Those who lay their dreams aside.
Choosing honor more than glory
Pledging faith with quiet pride
Those whose uniform is courage yet are unashamed of tears.
Finding in their love of freedom power stronger than their fears.
Sing a song for unsung heroes; sing from sea to shining sea.
As the faithful sang before you sing the song of liberty
Let us sing for unsung heroes, those who answer freedom's call.
Those united by one purpose all for one and one for all.
We will sing and not be silenced. We will keep our voices strong,
For as long as we keep singing freedom's cry will still live on.

That's not all of the song, but that's the gist of it. Thanks again to all of you veterans.