Eleventh Hour Of The Eleventh Day Of The Eleventh Month
Today, this morning, I plan to put out my American Flag, in honor of Veteran’s Day, across the country, and Remembrance Day in Canada, as well. This day has a significance that’s largely been forgotten by many in both countries.
It was on this day in 1918 that “The Great War,” “The War To End All Wars,” what we now call “The First World War” or “WW I” was finally ended. Of course, the seeds of the SECOND World War, which would dwarf the horrors of the First, were also planted by the Treaty of Versailles, which imposed humiliating and punitive reparations on Germany. This engendered a sense of grievance among the German people that was fertile soil for the ideas of a fanatical, but gifted orator who was able to exploit this anger and discontent to forge the Third Reich and bring the world to ruin.
To many in this country, this is ancient history. But I was raised in a military family. My grandfather actually fought in the trenches in WW I. He was part of an elite group within the American Legion called the 40/8 or “The Forty and Eight.” This referred to 40men, being hauled in a train car by eight horses in France, during the hostilities. Both he and my father (who was a submariner during WW II) were members of the Legion and both were Past Commanders of Reveille Post. So holidays that honored the military were routine at our home.
Every Veteran’s Day, like every Memorial Day, we dutifully went to parades and memorial services as a family, to commemorate and honor the fallen. I remember the Grandmaster of the Parade intoning the ritual, sonorous phrases over the loudspeakers so well: “On the eleventh hour…of the eleventh day…of the eleventh month…the guns were silenced.”
Now, I grew up during the Vietnam Era, when, in many quarters of the country, this custom went out of fashion. But not in my house. And I still continue to honor the sacrifice of old and forgotten warriors, who purchased my right and yours to live free, with their blood. So putting up the Flag is little enough to do.
Given that background, it seems strange that I didn’t serve in the military myself. But there are many ways to serve your country and your fellow man (and woman, for the P.C. crowd 
. Mine was to continue my education and go on to medical school, internship, residency, fellowship and ultimately, the practice of orthopaedic surgery for nearly a quarter century. I learned to save lives and defend patients from disease. Not the same thing, but a good thing, I think. We each do what we can.
After my back injury and the resulting disability, that career was over. But thanks to my books and CD’s and other healing programs, I can still help my fellow man (and woman) in ways that matter. In fact, the tips and advice I give out frequently, in this forum alone, help to relieve pain for many thousands more people than I could have possibly treated, during my years of practice.
For example, have you ever noticed that your aching joints tend to hurt you more, after a large steak dinner? Well, red meat is a great source of an Omega 6 fatty acid, arachadonic acid. And this type of fatty acid is a precursor of a number of inflammatory chemicals, like prostaglandins, that stimulate pain nerves and worsen knee pain. So, rather than take a drug to decrease these chemicals, just avoid red meat and see the difference. It’s simple, but it works.
For many other conventional and alternative ways to relieve knee pain (and other kinds of pain, too–they all share a common pathway), and restore function to your aching joints, and do it without surgery, see my newest healing program, HOW TO AVOID KNEE SURGERY at http://drbillsclinic.com/avoid_knee_surgery.html
So enjoy the day, my friend, and remember those veterans who’ve paid the price of freedom for us all. Til next time, be well.
Yours for a pain-free tomorrow,
Dr. Bill
P.S. For DR. BILL’S LITTLE GREEN BOOK ON ELIMINATING KNEE PAIN, a concise, but complete handbook on the root causes and the various options for treating knee pain, go to http://drbillsclinic.com/eliminate_knee_pain.html
P.P.S. For DR. BILL’S PAIN-FREE PROGRAM: EXERCISES TO PREVENT OR ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN, please go to
http://drbillsclinic.com/exercise_eliminate.html
P.P.P.S. For the giant, comprehensive ADVANCED MASTERS’ COURSE: HOW TO ELIMINATE KNEE PAIN–ONCE & FOR ALL!, everything you need to know on causes and solutions for knee pain and the complete exercise program, too, go to
http://drbillsclinic.com/advanced_masters.html
FREE BONUS CD with any order: THE HEALING POWER OF POSITIVE PAIN PERCEPTION
Copyright, 2008 by William Thomas Stillwell, MD
All rights reserved
Tags: aching joints, arachadonic acid, avoid knee surgery, avoid red meat, inflammatory chemicals, knee pain, omega 6 fatty acid, prostaglandins, red meat