Wherever you are this morning, please pause at 11am to commemorate the end of the Great War, which  ended on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month  with an armistice signed in France by the Great War allies and Germany.  The following year the Treaty of Versailles formally ended the brutal conflict.  This "war to end all wars" sadly didn't, of course; two decades later, another great war began and so the Great War became World War I -- although it didn't involve the entire world -- while the next massive deadly conflict was World War II.  

Photo credit: Ivor Castle, public domain

Known originally in the US as Armistice Day, November 11 was later changed to Veterans Day, honoring US military veterans both living and dead.  Memorial Day, at the end of May, originally called Decoration Day because of the post-Civil War custom of decorating the graves of the fallen with flowers, honors the memories of those killed in battle defending the United States.

And so, this morning at 11, do remember that freedom isn't free; it comes at a great price.