Remembrance Day

[LadyJane]

Twas not the war to end all wars
To fight and die and settle scores
On battlefields where bodies fell
With every passing mortar shell
Where comrades land with every thud
As men lie face down in the mud
Through tearful pleas and painful groans
With tearing flesh and broken bones
Waiting for the tide to turn
Time stands still while bodies burn
With each onslaught or gas attack
They buggered forth no looking back
Waves of soldiers in a trance
From Gallipoli to the North of France
Weakening and ashen gray
While keeping rival troops at bay
The madness of those tragic scenes
Should make us question what it means
And consider every now and then
The endless bravery of men
A century has come and gone
As many wars still carry on
Minds reflect and hearts are torn
Each year one mid November morn.

 

[It Aint Necessarily So]

remembrance-day

"In most countries, Remembrance Day is observed on 11 November to recall the end of First World War hostilities. Hostilities ended "at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month" of 1918, in accordance with the armistice signed by representatives of Germany and the Entente between 5:12 and 5:20 that morning."

I'm an American who hadn't heard of this holiday or the poppy pin tradition until moving to Mexico, where many Canadians like to spend their winters, and who wear the poppies this time of year.

Apparently, it's not just a Canadian observance, but is celebrated in multiple English-speaking countries, but not the Staes, where the same holiday is called Veteran's Day. The poppies represent dead soldiers in WWI.

 

[Vinayaka]

In Flanders Fields​

By John McCrae

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

FYI ... Flanders Fields is the huge Belgium graveyard for allied forces.

 

[ChristineM]

"In most countries, Remembrance Day is observed on 11 November to recall the end of First World War hostilities. Hostilities ended "at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month" of 1918, in accordance with the armistice signed by representatives of Germany and the Entente between 5:12 and 5:20 that morning."

I'm an American who hadn't heard of this holiday or the poppy pin tradition until moving to Mexico, where many Canadians like to spend their winters, and who wear the poppies this time of year.

Apparently, it's not just a Canadian observance, but is celebrated in multiple English-speaking countries, but not the Staes, where the same holiday is called Veteran's Day. The poppies represent dead soldiers in WWI.

View attachment 99791

It's quite a thing in France. Our village holds a service by the village memorial which ends with the names of all the villagers who died in WW1 being read out loud followed by 2 minutes silence then the national anthem is played.
It was all very solemn. Many of those who died have family who attend.

 

[Evangelicalhumanist]

Just finished attending Rembrance Day service at Toronto's Old City Hall. I do it every year, and it's always moving.

 

[libre]

TIL about the bleuet de France worn as an alternate remembrance symbol.

If I recall correctly my grandparents were hesitant to adopt the poppy in Ireland, seeing the symbol as associated with anglo nationalism, but opened up to them when they moved to Canada.