BUT... on Friday, my parents and I toured the WWII Memorial Museum in Caen, then the WWII American Cemetery, and then the Normandy beaches where American, British, and Canadian troops entered France to kick the Germans out. After seeing the first film at the Memorial Museum, which was entitled "D-Day", I was BLOWN AWAY. I was holding tears back through almost the entire movie. America didn't have to enter that war... we might have needed to defend ourselves from Japan after Pearl Harbor, but there was no reason to defend Europe, except that IT WAS THE RIGHT THING TO DO. They needed our help, and we willingly and gladly came to their aid. Normandy was the turning point of the war, and, without the help of hundreds of thousands of American troops, I think things could have gone on as they were going for a lot longer time. The willingness of Americans to come to the side of people that needed them is amazing. For just one day, I was PROUD to be an American. After touring the American cemetery, where nearly 10,000 of the more than 20,000 that died in NORMANDY alone are buried, I held my head up and was happy to be a part of our great nation.
Things might be different now. We might be in wars for different reasons and have different priorities, but, I'm sure that Europe will never forget the generosity of Americans in their time of need. I certainly won't.
The WWII Memorial Museum
Monument at the American Cemetery
Row after row of crosses and Stars of David with the beaches of Normany in the Background
Pont du Hoc - an important battle ground during the war. The ground is still marked with indentations from the bombings
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