IN FLANDERS FIELDS the poppies blowBetween 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.
Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD
The association of the Poppy to those who had been killed in war has existed since the Napoleonic Wars in the 19th century, over 110 years before being adopted in Canada and the British commonwealth. There exists a record from that time of how thickly Poppies grew over the graves of soldiers in the area of Flanders, France. This early connection between the Poppy and battlefield deaths described how fields that were barren before the battles exploded with the blood-red flowers after the fighting ended.
Just prior to the First World War, few Poppies grew in Flanders. During the tremendous bombardments of that war, the chalk soils became rich in lime from rubble, allowing “popaver rhoeas” to thrive. When the war ended, the lime was quickly absorbed and the Poppy began to disappear again.
The person who was responsible more than any other for the adoption of the Poppy as a symbol of Remembrance in Canada and the Commonwealth was Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae, a Canadian Medical Officer during the First World War.
16 comments:
Hi Lannio,
Have you ever heard the poem set to music? It's quite beautiful when you hear a choir of children singing it.
We saw John McCrae's name at Eilean Donan castle, in the Scottish Highlands, backl in the summer of 2001. He was on the McCrae roll of honour:
http://www.scotland-inverness.co.uk/Chatelaine/EDC/e-donan.htm
Argh, it cut the link out. I googled using the words "mccrae castle scotland" and it was the first link, in case you want to see it.
Hi Anne-Marie,
Actually, I've been lucky enough to sing the poem set to music. I did that one year up in Ottawa with a group of friends who formed a choir for an official government ceremony at the war memorial. Trust me, it was very moving.
It was at a time when our country was running out of mothers who had lost children in combat. Too bad that isn't the case today.
I still can't believe it all happened. I'm very lucky I know, I've admired Pete and The Who for probably 35 years. :-)
Bravo Lannio.
So appropriate and very moving. We all owe such a huge debt to our veterans - one that can never be repaid.
I have heard these verses and this story before. Thank you for posting it so it is fresh in my, in all of our, memory(s).
Lest we forget.
Love,
Rachel
Oh, and thank you for your kind words on my blog!
It's not really so bad - just feels like I got kicked in the gut. I am still working at the same position I've been at for more than three years, it's just part time now. I've known that I need to move on for a while now, so I suppose this was my cue to get going!
Most of my time has been spent polishing up the old resume and writing cover letters. There don't seem to be a lot of opportunities on my skill level and salary range in this area.
I do believe that everything happens for a reason though, so there must be something out there!
It has always been my favourite poem...
Lest we forget.
Hi Lannio,
Like I said on Dale's blog, I have always loved this poem. The story of the poppy is so symbolic too.
Hi Lannio, I love this story about the poppies and John McRae. I didn't know about that connection. I grew up with the tradition of wearing poppies on Remembrance day, and we did so in South Africa too, as indeed there were thousands of South Africans killed in both world wars. Their symbolism always touches me, even though I know that poppies like growing anywhere in these parts where the soil has been disturbed after lying fallow for some time. As I said to Dale, too, the poem is beautiful and very poignant.
Hi Lannio, I love this story about the poppies and John McRae. I didn't know about that connection. I grew up with the tradition of wearing poppies on Remembrance day, and we did so in South Africa too, as indeed there were thousands of South Africans killed in both world wars. Their symbolism always touches me, even though I know that poppies like growing anywhere in these parts where the soil has been disturbed after lying fallow for some time. As I said to Dale, too, the poem is beautiful and very poignant.
Hi Lannio, I love this story about the poppies and John McCrae. I didn't know about that connection. I grew up with the tradition of wearing poppies on Remembrance day, and we did so in South Africa too, as indeed there were thousands of South Africans killed in both world wars. Their symbolism always touches me, even though I know that poppies like growing anywhere in these parts where the soil has been disturbed after lying fallow for some time. As I said to Dale, too, the poem is beautiful and very poignant.
Sorry Lannio, my comment published twice, so I deleted the second one!
Actually, it published four times, Val!
LOL
Poppies are such a stong, yet delicate flower - they grow "feral" in the ditches about our town.
Hee, Val, you're making up for lost time. It was only up twice and then it multiplied!
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