Remembrance Sunday is the 9th November this year - this coming weekend. I wasn't sure for a while if it was the first Sunday after November 11th or the closest Sunday to November 11th. Seems it is the latter.
One of my Dad's older brothers & a brother-in-law fought in the Far East. One didn't come home. The other was a prisoner of the Japanese until the end of the War. His health was always bad after he got home, but at least I had a chance to know him in his latter years when I was a kid. I think every family can tell similar stories to these. They should never be forgotten.
If you can bucket list a ww1 battlefield tour I recommend you do so. It’s impossible to explain the range of emotions you feel.
I'm off to Flanders in two weeks. I've done it many times, but it still makes we weep when I see Tyne Cot. I always make time to visit Langmark, the German cemetery. I'll head over to Poperinge for the Shot at Dawn cells and Talbot House. The Menin Gate at dusk is a must for anyone in Ypres.
Ypres is humbling. We have two from our family named on the Menin Gate from the East Surrey Regiment. I may go under my own steam next trip. It’s like 20 mins drive when u get in the car at the French side.
Just to note; I don't agree with shaming people who don't wear one. Years ago I used to believe there might perhaps have been a latent political element to it (though I have always worn a poppy at this time of year). But I do not believe anymore that there is any political element to honouring Armistice Day. It is an act above and beyond anything like that. It is solely about remembrance and respect for the supreme sacrifice made by so many. Nothing else.
