I am always gratified at this time of year when I see the sheer volume of people, both young and old alike, who are sporting a poppy on their lapels. Over 90 years after the idea was first conceived, the Poppy Appeal is one of the few charitable events that regularly captures the nation’s attention. Unlike others, such as Red Nose Day, it does so without television marathons and celebrity endorsements.
Poppies were originally worn in the aftermath of the First World War, which claimed the lives of 800,000 British soldiers alone. Indeed the Poppy Appeal and Remembrance Day can be said to have helped keep alive the enormous fascination and horror the conflict still holds in this country’s psyche today. From programmes like Downton Abbey drawing in millions of viewers, to the growing interest amongst people in the wartime service of their ancestors, the First World War continues to fascinate and repel.
It is only right that its appalling horrors and vast slaughter are commemorated afresh each year; the scale of the sacrifice reflected in the swathes of poppies that flood our streets is a ready reminder for a new generation of the futility of war. However, crucial to the poppies’ continuing success is the sad fact of their renewed relevance each year, as fresh blood is spilled in the name of the United Kingdom and elsewhere in different conflicts around the world. As we go about our everyday lives, it is all too easy to forget that people are fighting and dying in our names, whether we like it or not. While war and its terrors may seem a distant prospect to most of us, to all too many people around the world it is an all pervasive reality.
Remembrance Day and the Poppy Appeal, and the build up to it, is the one time of the year where we as a society really stop and think about the sacrifices made by countless people for us to enjoy the world we do today. It gives us an opportunity to think about how war has shaped Britain, and in a society where negative images of young people are prevalent, it provides a chance to focus on young people who did their duty and are worthy of our total respect. Life is given to war memorials that stand unnoticed and unadorned in many places for much of the year, as they receive the attention they deserve.
November 11th also provides a chance to reflect on the futility of war. All the young men and women who lost their lives prematurely, deserve not only our respect but also for us to learn the lessons of their deaths. Remembrance Day reminds us of war in all its destructive potential; of how it should only ever be a last resort.
Most importantly of all, the Poppy Appeal and Remembrance Sunday make sure that we us a society never forget. It makes sure we honour the promise made in Binyon’s famous poem, that ‘We Will Remember Them’.
