D-Day

Today is an auspicious day. With humility, I reference the 64th anniversary of the Allied Invasion that signalled the beginning of the end of the Axis forces in World War II. Notwithstanding a push from East by the Russians, the lives lost at places with names like Omaha and Utah paved the way for a beachhead that became a stanglehold on the European continent and allowed U.S. , British and French forces to battle their way into the heart of the Nazi war machine. We should all honor those brave souls who fought for liberty and who guaranteed our freedom with their very lives. The National World War II Museum opened here eight years ago as the then appropriately phrased D-Day Museum. In the intervening years, it was decided that there were other D-Days that were observed or could be observed. The focus on just June 6, 1944 was determined to be too specific. The Pacific campaign as well as battles waged on other significant dates could not be recalled easily if the focus was just on Normandy. The National World War II Museum is undergoing an expansion program now and will be increasing in size significantly in the coming years.
Happy Birthday, too, to my brother-in-law David Sobel, who lives in Sydney, Australia and who probably won't be able to read about this until tomorrow. When David moved back to Australia from a short stint here in New Orleans (he couldn't stomach the crime), my father remarked that I would probably be able to count the number of times I would see him again on both hands. So far, my dad has been right. David was here last year, but I've seen him fewer than five times in the 13 years that my wife Sally (his sister) passed away. I've seen my two nephews (Joshua and Trevor) and his wife Pamela even less.