My grandparents survived the Second World War. I don’t know much about what they went through. We never talked about it. 

I imagine part of this silence involved protecting their grandkids from the horror. Maybe protecting themselves too, from revisiting the past and risking more trauma. 

By the time I was old enough to learn more, and could claim the agency to ask, they had all passed away. If I did the rough math, they would have been around 10, maybe 15. 

Peace is not to be taken for granted. People believed in it, fought and gave up their lives for it. Nearly 10% of the Canadian population joined the army during the Second World War. 

Peace gave people, like my grandparents, hope to survive.