“Earn this.”

Those, of course, were the unforgettable words spoken by Tom Hanks’ character at the conclusion of “Saving Private Ryan.”

If there’s a better war movie, I haven’t seen it.

If there’s a more meaningful two-word sentence in the English language, I haven’t heard it.

As civilians, we can’t “earn” our freedom the same way that men in battle do. They bleed and die. We complain if the vending machine is out of our favorite candy bar.

But there is something we can do. We can remember what they have done for us, all the sacrifices they have made, all the pain they have suffered.

And we can be incredibly, eternally grateful to them.