Remembrance Day

The Dutch like to squeeze all their holidays in at once. Last Friday was the Queen's birthday (officially, not actually), today was Remembrance Day for people who have died in wars, especially World War II, and tomorrow is Liberation Day to celebrate the anniversary of liberation from the Germans. What a week! I am going to write mostly about Remembrance Day, which is a very special idea in theory that...sometimes comes to mean something else. Let me explain.

Every year on May 4, the Queen comes to the Dam, exits from the Royal Palace (not actually where she lives), walks across Dam Square, and lays a wreath on the National Monument. Here is a not-so-professional photo of the procession walking out a few years ago. You'll be happy to know Queen Beatrix carried the same purse this year!






















Then at 8:00pm, right after the wreath-laying, the entire country observes a two-minute period of silence.

See, I told you this was a neat idea! I like the sense of national unity that it invokes, or simply the thought that everyone (most people) are doing the same thing at the same time. And I like the idea of remembering the sacrifices of those who came before you -- the noble idea that they gave their lives to make the world a better place, blah blah blah. Call me a romantic.

Since we had STNL class tonight right when the ceremony/minutes-of-silence were set to take place, Prof. Aay went to a news website so we could watch everything happen online. After all, this was another opportunity to participate in Dutch culture. Even though it is a solemn event, it is their culture nonetheless. So we spent some class time watching TV -- not a bad deal!

We watched the Royal family walk out onto Dam Square at about 7:50. (Pardon my extreme descriptiveness here, but it is my only time to live somewhere with actually royalty and I'm going to enjoy it). I mentally commended the Queen for walking gracefully across the Dam in such high heels at the age of 72. She's a very cool lady. Finally the group reached the National Monument and Queen Beatrix and her make-a-movie-of-my-life son, Willem-Alexander, together lifted the memorial wreath and put it into place. (I'm glad he helped her, it was pretty big.) Then, in a completely silent Dam Square, they stood looking at the wreath for the two minutes of silence.

And we, in a completely silent classroom, watched too.





We -- the country -- made it about 90 seconds in to the two minutes, and then this:



















That first aerial shot (about 10 seconds in) is quite something, isn't it? That was my first thought. Then I thought -- what in the world did we just watch unfold?

Turns out, nothing horrific. Someone in the crowd began shouting during the two minutes of silence, which cause mass panic and the crowds ran. I don't blame them. First of all, nothing logical ever happens in crowds. You don't think, you just go. And the Dutch have reason to be skittish at these events after last year's Queen's Day attack in Apeldoorn. I must commend the police/security for turning everything back around as quickly as they did. Shortly after the video I posted cuts out, right after the announcer called for everyone to stay in place, the Royal family came back out, the National Anthem was played, and things went on as...normal.

Not quite normal, though. I wish you could also see a video of the "after," because it was something. Queen Beatrix and her family walked hand in hand back into Dam Square to tumultuous applause. Then that fine lady who can walk better than I can in heels retook her place in front of the wreath and, without flinching, without blinking, looked back up at the monument and sang the words to the oldest national anthem in the world.

Now that is a Queen, let me tell you.

And oh, the crowd they showed singing along! Many people were crying. All the children (poor children!) that I saw on the news were crying and looked scared, freaked out, out of their minds. Dam Square was visibly shaken. Singing, but shaken.

How in the world are you supposed to remember veterans and soldiers who made the world a better place to live when it might not really be that much better at all?

Stupid noble idea.

What I mean is...We just can't get stuck in the idea that everything bad -- wars, hunger, Nazis, fear -- that was then. This is now and now is better. History is not progress. People did horrible things then, they do horrible things now, and, yes, they will do horrible things in the future. We are not, not, not getting any better.

But we can hug our kids when they're scared. We can stop the panic two minutes after it started and bring everyone back into the square. We can sing the national anthem without flinching, with heads held high. All this from the country whose motto is Ik zal handhaven: I shall endure.

God with us, we will endure.