Terrorism, the war in response and the ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan give Veterans Day special urgency. The nation is encountering new types of warfare, wondering about old enemies and, appropriately, recalling with new respect the veterans of wars past and present. All of this gives the origins of Veterans Day new significance in 2007.

Congress voted Armistice Day as a legal holiday in 1938, 20 years after the first armistice ended the carnage of World War I on Nov. 11, 1918.

In 1953 the people of Emporia, Kan., began calling the holiday Veterans Day as a tribute to the veterans of their town. Soon afterward, Congress passed a bill introduced by a Kansas congressman renaming the national holiday Veterans Day. The name will remain as long as there are caring people to remember its significance every Nov. 11.

The 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month is set aside each year in solemn remembrance of the first Armistice Day, when the world rejoiced and celebrated after four years of unspeakable horror, and to remember the sacrifices men and women made in order to ensure a peace that would last for many years.

Over the years the way Americans celebrated Veterans Day shifted from solely honoring the dead to honoring veterans of all wars. Especially after the nation’s long involvement in the Vietnam War, the holiday’s emphasis was broadened to include not only parades and patriotic orations in village squares but gatherings at major landmarks like the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, where people walk silently along the wall, placing gifts and standing in quiet vigil.

Support groups organized by veterans of military service, including the American Legion and the Veterans of Foreign Wars, work tirelessly each November to raise money for their charitable activities by selling paper poppies crafted by disabled veterans. Although a more frequent sight in past years than today, the imitation bright red wildflower is still seen tucked into lapels as a symbol of World War I and its countless bloody battles. They are memorialized in a John McCrae poem, written following a 1915 battle in Europe. Its opening line reads, “In Flanders fields the poppies blow/Between the crosses, row on row.”

This Veterans Day, please take a few minutes to thank a member of your own family who served or is serving this country. Their courage and dedication ensures the freedom many take for granted. Finally, remember veterans in your prayers. Remember that America’s veterans are common Americans of uncommon valor and devotion to duty. This day belongs to these gallant Americans.