Victory!

Today is Victory Day here in France.  70 years ago on this day an act of surrender was signed in Berlin that liberated France from the German occupation and ended WWII.  While is it a joyous day, France uses this day to commemorate the soldiers and citizens who gave their lives, or whose lives were taken, during the horrible years leading up to it.

Matthew is still sick, so we missed heading into town to the official memorials (because me taking three kids to a somber war memorials seemed like a terrible idea).  The war is still a hard topic here in France.  There are placards all over town, noting the names of people taken from the house or school to which the sign is affixed, the date they were taken and sometimes what happened.  The sign on a school downtown notes that two boys, aged 6 and 11, were taken to Auschwitz from their school because they were Jewish.  There is a large home just down the street from our school that is currently being remodeled into a retirement facility.  One rumor about town is that it used to be the SS hangout during the occupation.  It is sometimes strange, as an American who grew up on soil with little known historical significance, to be here and think about the ground I walk on and what transpired there.

Thank you for your many prayers, we have felt uplifted.  Even though Matthew is still sick, others are on the mend.  Please pray that the sickness doesn’t spread, but Levi seemed off today, so I’m wondering if he might be down next.  I’ll let you know.  I am grateful that today was off for everyone so that we could all rest a bit.  (Actually, I got extra study time with everyone else sleeping – woo hoo!)