In Flanders Fields
Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae
MD (1872-1918) Canadian Army
IN FLANDERS FIELDS the poppies blow
Between 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.
Here in Canada, on and around November 11 of every year, we take time to recog
nize the men and women who fought for our freedom and celebrate their courage and they gave their lives for their fellow Canadian.
nize the men and women who fought for our freedom and celebrate their courage and they gave their lives for their fellow Canadian.This time of year, every department store, grocery store, coffee shop and wherever else we visit has a war vet standing at the front holding a tray full of poppies for us to purchase one. In a matter of a few years, most of our WW2 vets will have passed on and we will lose the opportunity to thank them for their courage and love for the county in which we live.
So remember, when you buy a poppy and the war hero says “thank you”, please think about who it is who is speaking to you and respond back to them …. “No ….. Thank YOU!”
1 comment:
When I was in high school I won prizes for reading poetry.
I rode on the back of a Cadillac convertible in the Memorial Day parade all the way to the county courthouse. We we arrived, I read Flander's Fields for a huge crowd.
The only sound other than my reading was the flag whipping in the wind. It was surprisingly moving far a 15 year old poetry reader.
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