General Chat

FOR THE FALLEN
by Laurence Binyon

With proud thanksgiving, a mother for her children,
England mourns for her dead across the sea.
Flesh of her flesh they were, spirit of her spirit,
Fallen in the cause of the free.

Solemn the drums thrill: Death august and royal
Sings sorrow up into immortal spheres.
There is music in the midst of desolation
And a glory that shines upon our tears.

They went with songs to the battle, they were young.
Straight of limb, true of eye, steady and aglow.
They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted:
They fell with their faces to the foe.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.

They mingle not with their laughing comrades again;
They sit no more at familiar tables of home;
They have no lot in our labour of the day-time;
They sleep beyond England's foam.

But where our desires are and our hopes profound
Felt as a well-spring that is hidden from sight,
To the innermost heart of their own land they are known
As the stars are known to the Night;

As the stars that shall be bright when we are dust,
Moving in marches upon the heavenly plain;
As the stars that are starry in the time of our darkness,
To the end, to the end they remain.

Remembering
Arthur Halestrap
Henry Allingham
Harry Patch
Bill Stone,
and others,
and the legacy that they left behind;
what they did when they were young and when they were older.

With pride and gratitude my Great-Uncle

Private William Mellors 1/6th Batillion Notts & Derby Regiment
Died France 14/10/1915 aged 19

http://www.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/customs/Remembrance.html

The First Two Minute Silence in London (11th November 1919) as reported in the Manchester Guardian, 12th November 1919.

'The first stroke of eleven produced a magical effect.

The tram cars glided into stillness, motors ceased to cough and fume, and stopped dead, and the mighty-limbed dray horses hunched back upon their loads and stopped also, seeming to do it of their own volition.

Someone took off his hat, and with a nervous hesitancy the rest of the men bowed their heads also. Here and there an old soldier could be detected slipping unconsciously into the posture of 'attention'. An elderly woman, not far away, wiped her eyes, and the man beside her looked white and stern. Everyone stood very still ... The hush deepened. It had spread over the whole city and become so pronounced as to impress one with a sense of audibility. It was a silence which was almost pain ... And the spirit of memory brooded over it all.'

rip Thomas Woodhams died Vimy Ridge France 13 Apr 1917

R.I.P

5 2 x great uncles in WW1 and 1 1 x great uncle in WW2

Hazelx

I salute my 3 great uncles lost in WW1 & WW2.

Thank you, Carol. I did not know that site.

http://www.viewlondon.co.uk/whatson/remembrance-sunday-london-feature-428.html

Remembrance Sunday London events include a special wreath-laying ceremony led by the Royal Family, which traditionally takes place on the nearest Sunday to 11th November. Join crowds of well-wishers to witness the ceremony live at the Cenotaph in Whitehall on Sunday 14th November 2010. A two minute silence will be held at 11am.

Remembrance Sunday London Parade
Remembrance Day features a full formal parade of Royal Family members joined by former and current service men and women. The parade is televised, and takes place between 10am and 12pm.

Each year, the nation falls silent at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, in commemoration of those who lost their lives in the two world wars. Join the country in tribute of the men and women who fought and died, in a poignant national tradition.

This year sees the 92nd anniversary of the end of the First World War, marking another sombre Remembrance Sunday. The Royal Family will lead the nation in remembrance of those who died during the conflict, over nine decades on from its end. A silence is also being held at Trafalgar Square itself on Thursday 11th November itself;

Music concerts
As well as the Remembrance Sunday London parade by the Cenotaph, there is also a special concert at the Royal Albert Hall to mark Armistice Day. Live music from military bands features throughout the concert.

www.greatwar.nl

You should all look at this site!

Dear Joy and all

Hello

Hope you are okay.

A Poem of Belief by a Jewish Prisoner in a Nazi Concentration Camp during World War II.


"I believe in the sun
even when it is not shining

And I believe in love,
even when I cannot feel it.

I believe in God,
even when he is silent"


Take very gentle care
Very best wishes
xx

For those who may find this of help:

http://www.ctbi.org.uk/233
Remembrance Sunday, 14 November 2010

The Order of Service for Remembrance Sunday is published by Churches Together in Britain and Ireland and prepared with The Joint Liturgical Group of Great Britain and The Royal British Legion.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning, we will remember them.

Leni

http://www.britishlegion.org.uk/about-us

Reflection - through Remembrance of past sacrifice in the cause of freedom
Hope - by remembering the past, a younger generation has the chance of a better future
Comradeship - through shared experience and mutual support
Selflessness - by putting others first
Service - to those in need and in support of the whole community

I am glad that you posted it, Kath, thank you.

No, unfortunately, useful and supportive threads disappear now and then into cyberspace.
Not to worry, we carry on posting :-)

Yes Joy, I did post it last year, hope you don't mind - it always makes me cry just reading it to myself. I lost family members during both world wars and sometimes certain people's attitudes to poppies amazes me.

I have heard people say "oh, I've got one from last year so I don't need to buy a poppy this year". Sorry - but the money needs to keep coming in every year!!

I can't understand why your thread from last year has been removed????

Kath. x

I think you may have posted it, Kath, on the remembrance thread that I posted last year (that has been removed for no reason); thank you.

n

Hi Rita

My husband and son have taken a copy of it to work every year since I first found this poem (I think it was here on Genes). It makes people stop and think.

We should also remember that not only did young men (and women) give up their lives for us, but all of their family and friends had their lives altered and things were never the same again for them.

Buying a poppy to help the British Legion carry on their work is the least we can do.

Kath. x

Thank you.


Not disrespectful at all about the horses :-)

- I saw the following inscription next to a wreath and a picture of a horse's face, during a battlefields tour:

"Remembering the Horses and all other creatures that died or suffered in the service of man in time of war and to the personnel of the Royal Army Veterinary Corps and equivalent foreign services who cared for the sick and wounded."