WE WILL REMEMBER THEM..

Just a few seconds of your time.





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.

By Laurence Binyon 1914
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Thanks for that Roders, have never read the whole poem. I don't think it matters how much time has passed, we must always remember, for their sake and for ours.

 

Went shopping in Poole today, went into M&S(not for me of course!) and the lights suddenly dimmed and there was 2 minutes silence and after a few seconds people realised why and it did fall silent. Our respect for those that died must never diminish and hopefully it won't.

 

Roders ..that is really nice we are ex forces so we know how important poppy day is..

 

I've never seen the full poem - thanks for that. Ex RAF father and me - and I hope we will always remember, its the very least we can do for those that fell and fall in war.

 

Thanks Roders, that was very moving.

I was working on saturday with young pupils at a music centre, at the staff meeting which always starts the day, the head of centre asked if we should keep the 2 minutes silence, I was agast that he thought we might not do it!

no one said anything, so I protested wildly at the thought that we might not!

In the end they decided they would do 1 minute. When the time came it was actually well performed, the head of centre rang a hand bell and the children were very quiet - its not that easy when you have hundreds of kids armed with musical instruments! At the end of the skimpy minute one of the pupils played the last post - it resounded poiniently round the building and really sent a chill.

Yes of course we will remember because our parents we actually in the war, but it is much harder for the generation who did not hear the tale first hand.

sorry I have gone on a bit

 

so very sad god bless them all
and the ones who are bravely still away from home
may they all come back to their families soon
kathy3

 

Thanks. Are you aware that Radio 3 is running a Wilfred Owen week..reading all of his war poems.