Lest we forget....
...that at the sharp end of every war are dead sons and daughters, friends and relatives.
This picture is taken in the Field of Rememberance in Westminster Abbey. The grass area in front of the abbey is taken over by the people who want to remember their fallen realatives and comrades.
A lot are soldiers, some you may not have heard of like the Glider Squadron that was used to transport trops and equipment into enemy territory. But others are more mundane - engineers, doctors, vets.
Remember these who died so that we may live.
posted by Ham at 02:01 --
Comments here: 11
Comments on "Lest we forget...."
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Kate said ... (02:45) :
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breadchick said ... (03:34) :
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Anonymous said ... (05:37) :
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Ham said ... (09:41) :
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perle de rosée said ... (12:35) :
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perle de rosée said ... (12:36) :
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Eric said ... (14:10) :
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Curly said ... (21:46) :
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jo said ... (22:05) :
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Anonymous said ... (03:13) :
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Deb said ... (20:15) :
post a commentPretty impressive! Does anyone know why poppies are the symbol for 11/11? Think I'll have to do a websearch.
"In Flanders Fields..." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_Flanders_Fields) Poppies are the symbol of 11/11 because the poppy fields of Belgium and France that sprung up in the graveyards of war dead during and after WWI (11/11/11 1918 end of WWI). So many of the WWI poets (http://www.lib.byu.edu/~english/WWI/poets/poets.html) mention the poppy fields in their poems. The flower always makes me sad and when I was living in London, "poppy day" had me hearing "Shropshire Lad" in my head.
You can read more about why the poppy is the symbol of 11/11 here:
http://www.legion.ca/asp/docs/rempoppy/allabout_e.asp
or
http://www.canoe.ca/RemembranceDay/poppy.html
ps..a random fact, the poem "In Flanders Fields" written by John McCrae is found on the reverse side of the Canadian ten dollar bill
Can I also take this opportunity to recommend that, if you ever are in the visinity of Ypres in Belgium ("Wipers" as it was known by the tommies at the time), you take the opportunity to join in the daily ceremony of sounding the last post at the Menen Gate.
As I already said my grandfather was lost during the first world war. He was killed by the Fort de Vaux in Verdun. So has the 11th of November some signification for me, because I was always sad about that that I didn't known my real grandfather but the second husband of my grandmother. My grandfather was a good solo singer in choirs and I would I like to know him.With him the life of my father would have be different from what it was. He was killed at the age of 26.
When I write "he" in the last sentence I am speaking about my grandfather and not of my father, although he was also a long time war prisoner.
That is a great photo Ham, I love it. I also like the poppy tradition that you have in England, we don't have that in France.
Pretty amazing picture Ham, the sheer expanse of it. More like Flander's fields. I'm trying to portray Remembrance too this week.
Curly's Photoshop
Life is precious and you image shows just how fragile a life can be - so many fallen.
Always remember - lest we forget.
This is a spectacular and very moving photo Ham.
Re your last sentence, I wouldn't say they died so that we may live, but that they died so that we may live free...
sobering.
beautiful, but sobering.