On Monday, we remembered the Japanese navy's terrible attack on the American base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.

It was a Sunday morning, just before 8 a.m., when hundreds of Japanese planes destroyed or damaged eight battleships, including the USS Arizona, where a huge bomb pierced the deck and 1,000 died.

Overall, the attackers destroyed about 300 airplanes, killed 2,400 military and civilians, and wounded another thousand.

The next day, President Franklin D. Roosevelt addressed a joint session of Congress. He called the attack a “day that will live in infamy” and asked for a declaration of war.

Suddenly we were thrust into the middle of World War II. From the coast of Maine to the coast of California, and places in between, men, young and old, signed up to wear the uniform.

Clerks became sailors, truck drivers became artillerymen, farmers became Marines, college boys became lieutenants and ensigns.

Parents and sweethearts cried when they left. Many cried again when they were lost.

When it was over in 1945, Veterans Administration records tell us 291,557 military members died in combat, 113,842 perished from non-combat circumstances, and 670,846 were wounded.

Back in the U.S.A., we were asked to do our part, too. We were blocked from buying new cars as America's industry turned out planes, weapons and other supplies.

Bath Iron Works built dozens of destroyers in record time, while other coastal shipyards turned out auxiliary craft. Local shipyards built wooden minesweepers.

At home, families recovering from the Depression planted victory gardens. Fuel and tires were rationed. Butter disappeared from the grocery stores. Instead, Mom handed us something called Oleomargarine, a cream-colored substance encased in a clear envelope with a red dot in the middle.

She told us to squeeze the package until the red dot burst, coloring the creamy substance with a shade of buttery yellow.

We went along with the restrictions and mandates because our nation was at war with a powerful enemy.

Today, America is at war with another powerful enemy, an invisible enemy that seems to be everywhere infecting many, sickening some, and killing others, especially old folks, like me.

This invisible enemy, called COVID, has taken almost as many lives (281,000) as combat deaths (291,000) in World War II.

Public health experts say this is the worst public health crisis in our history. They warn the death toll may reach 300,000 or 400,000 in the next two months.

During World War II, our soldiers, sailors and Marines could protect themselves and shoot back. In this pandemic, we have no ammo to shoot at COVID, and there is no place to hide. Our only defense is to stay home, wear masks, wash our hands, and stay away from others.

Despite the horrifying death toll, some of our friends choose to ignore the enemy, saying it violates their rights. Our elected leaders asked us to wear masks. Still, some refuse, saying it is their right to choose to comply or not.

At the same time, most accept other government mandates, like seat belts, auto insurance and speed limits, and can't wait to stand in line to buy fishing and hunting licenses.

No one likes to be told what to do. I get that.

But I know seat belts (and government-mandated airbags) save lives. Mandated car insurance can fix your SUV when someone backs into it in the post office parking lot. Drunk drivers do kill others. I know complying with these government mandates takes money out of our wallets. But there are good reasons to go along with them.

The good news is that it looks like Big Pharma will deliver a vaccine in the next month or so. They are working out the logistics of transporting it to our state, our county, our towns, and us. It is a huge job, but Americans are used to meeting huge challenges.

We know individual sacrifices, like those made by our parents and grandparents, were worth the effort. The same goes for wearing masks.

I can't wait for 2020 to exit the stage. I want to socialize again. Dinner with good friends is a real treat. I'd love to lose the mask. We all would.

Most of all, my bride and I would love to gather with our kids, grandkids and great-grandkids. We would love to sit around a Christmas tree watching giggling little ones tear into brightly colored presents.

But if staying home, wearing a mask and missing traditional holiday celebrations will help keep our loved ones safe, isn't it worth the effort?

Besides, your mother always told you to wash your hands. Didn't she?

And, mother was always right.

Be safe.