Nov. 11 is a date too often overlooked as just another day on the calendar. But this year, for many, the greatest significance of Nov. 11 is that it marked the two-month anniversary of the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

But Sunday also marked Veterans Day.

The holiday has been historically used to celebrate and pay tribute to all those who fought for the causes of our country, both domestically and abroad. It’s a chance to be outwardly grateful for the freedoms our nation provides and the way its citizens have worked to preserve them.

Yet few people seem to remember Veterans Day - maybe because it’s not a holiday nearly everyone normally gets off work and school. More likely, however, is that our generation has been at peace for years - with the exception of the Gulf War, which we watched like a video game on television - and we’ve been so far removed from any real conflict that the sacrifices such a conflict might require seem so far away.

The world’s recent events changed all that. The international campaign against terrorism brings attention to a military conflict in which soldiers - men and women we know and love - might have to lay their lives down for the country and ideals they believe in.

The horror of Sept. 11 instilled America’s younger generation with a sense of shock and amazement that we could be attacked on our own soil. Threats of anthrax, both real and false, make the population afraid to open the mail.

Suddenly the importance of our veterans has hit close to home.

We’ve been marked by a brand of conflict. History will look back on us and remember the violence. Newsweek has already dubbed us “Generation 9-11.”

On a normal year, the average citizen forgets about Veterans Day for any number of reasons. But as recent events shape and change the way we live, we can’t forget this important date this time.

It’s important for us to remember what our soldiers gave fighting for our nation, and what our police officers, firefighters and other civil workers - whose jobs often go without thanks - do to help us every day.

We need to remember our veterans, and our veterans-to-be, as an increasing number of people sign up for the military - some spurred by the terrible events two months ago, others simply out of a desire to serve. All deserve to be recognized as they lay their lives down for ours.

And most poignant is the importance of those who never made it home to be called a veteran.

It doesn’t take a lot to observe Veterans Day. There’s no elaborate service to be performed, no unique ceremony to make plans for and no gifts to buy. It’s not the kind of holiday most people are used to.

For all that we’ve been given, and all our veterans gave up so that our country can be what it is, just find a simple way to say thank you - with a smile, a warm look or a visit to a veteran you know.

At a time to be grateful for our veterans, there’s no more powerful gesture.