Remembrance Day: lest we forget

[SilentKnight]

In honor of Remembrance Day:

In Flanders Fields
By: 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.

McCrae's "In Flanders Fields" remains to this day one of the most memorable war poems ever written. It is a lasting legacy of the terrible battle in the Ypres salient in the spring of 1915. Here is the story of the making of that poem:

Although he had been a doctor for years and had served in the South African War, it was impossible to get used to the suffering, the screams, and the blood here, and Major John McCrae had seen and heard enough in his dressing station to last him a lifetime.

As a surgeon attached to the 1st Field Artillery Brigade, Major McCrae, who had joined the McGill faculty in 1900 after graduating from the University of Toronto, had spent seventeen days treating injured men -- Canadians, British, Indians, French, and Germans -- in the Ypres salient.

It had been an ordeal that he had hardly thought possible. McCrae later wrote of it:

"I wish I could embody on paper some of the varied sensations of that seventeen days... Seventeen days of Hades! At the end of the first day if anyone had told us we had to spend seventeen days there, we would have folded our hands and said it could not have been done."

One death particularly affected McCrae. A young friend and former student, Lieut. Alexis Helmer of Ottawa, had been killed by a shell burst on 2 May 1915. Lieutenant Helmer was buried later that day in the little cemetery outside McCrae's dressing station, and McCrae had performed the funeral ceremony in the absence of the chaplain.

The next day, sitting on the back of an ambulance parked near the dressing station beside the Canal de l'Yser, just a few hundred yards north of Ypres, McCrae vented his anguish by composing a poem. The major was no stranger to writing, having authored several medical texts besides dabbling in poetry.

In the nearby cemetery, McCrae could see the wild poppies that sprang up in the ditches in that part of Europe, and he spent twenty minutes of precious rest time scribbling fifteen lines of verse in a notebook.

A young soldier watched him write it. Cyril Allinson, a twenty-two year old sergeant-major, was delivering mail that day when he spotted McCrae. The major looked up as Allinson approached, then went on writing while the sergeant-major stood there quietly. "His face was very tired but calm as we wrote," Allinson recalled. "He looked around from time to time, his eyes straying to Helmer's grave."

When McCrae finished five minutes later, he took his mail from Allinson and, without saying a word, handed his pad to the young NCO. Allinson was moved by what he read:

"The poem was exactly an exact description of the scene in front of us both. He used the word blow in that line because the poppies actually were being blown that morning by a gentle east wind. It never occurred to me at that time that it would ever be published. It seemed to me just an exact description of the scene."

In fact, it was very nearly not published. Dissatisfied with it, McCrae tossed the poem away, but a fellow officer retrieved it and sent it to newspapers in England. The Spectator, in London, rejected it, but Punch published it on 8 December 1915.

[TheLegacy]

if only the youth could realize that the guns they are carrying should be used for freedom rather than answer to their whim they would lay them down and respect the lives lost instead of taking them for granted

thank you veterans and the familys who sacrificed their own for our countries

[Wiggles]

radio said here in Canada there were only a handful of a Vets left from WW1, crazy that the entire generation involved is almost gone.

[sweetums]

Originally Posted by Wiggles

radio said here in Canada there were only a handful of a Vets left from WW1, crazy that the entire generation involved is almost gone.

Hey Wiggles - was watching the coverage myself on CBC. They said that there are currently only 5 remaining Canadian WWI vets alive -- their average age is 105 -- and this year was the first that none were in attendance at any of the ceremonies.

It was a lovely ceremony.

[SilentKnight]

This is the first time in 30 years that my father-in-law was not able to attend as Sergeant At Arms for the wreath ceremony in Cambridge - due to eye surgery. He's disappointed in not being able to be there, its always been a tradition to him.

My grandfather served on ships in the merchant marine back in the day.


SilentKnight

[who]

War is dumb.

[RuthB]

I'm so proud, my daughter is going to be representing the Canadian Sea Cadets at our local cenitaph. She is one of only 4 who will stand around the cenitaph at attention while wreaths are placed in honour of those who lost their lives for our freedom.

We must always remember the great sacrifice made on our behalf by so many so that we could enjoy so many of the freedoms we take for granted today.

[Lance69]

Originally Posted by SilentKnight

SilentKnight

That's a cool pic, and so true,
And WEGRuth, that's a great reason to be proud, your daughter being in cadets will teach her things, other kids will never understand.
Lest we Forget

[Lance69]

Originally Posted by who

War is dumb.

And sometimes very necessary! Congratulations on your job and ability to type with free hands. Now go thank a soldier.

[netgirl]

i love it

[Mutt]

the WWII generation is dying away too

[SilentKnight]

Originally Posted by Mutt

the WWII generation is dying away too

Sad, but true.

[Elli]

Excellent post, thank you Knight.

[BRISK]

I've been to Vimy Ridge. That place is a real eye opener. The trenches and the shellholes are absolutely eerie, sad, and unforgettable.

[AsianDivaGirlsWebDude]

A fitting video tribute to remind everyone what Veteran's Day is about:

In Memorium...

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