On a cool and foggy morning in July '89, I visited Omaha Beach as part of tour. I managed to get down to the beach by myself for a few minutes. The fog was thick that day. The beach was an island in the fog. You could barely see the bluffs or the English Channel. After a minute or two, I started getting goosebumps, and I swear, I swear, you could see ships in the mist in front of me and movement on the bluffs behind me. The whole world paused in expectation.

This was one of the scariest moments of my life.

I retreated backup the path into light and warmth. The expectation faded; the fog and the chill remained. The land knew what happened next.

There are so few left who participated. I will never know what those who were there this day felt, but it falls on us to remember for them. So today, I remember.

There are a few times every year where everyone should take a moment, no matter how busy they are, to pause and reflect. On bravery, on sacrifice...and on what our lives would be like, had history taken a different course.

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Fearless creatures, we all learn to fight the Reaper
Can't defeat Her, so instead I'll have to be Her