In Flanders Fields

Fields of poppies

November 11, 2018 marked the 100^th anniversary of the end of War World I.  At the “11^th hour of the 11^th day of the 11^th month” in 1918, an armistice was signed between the Allied Forces and Germany ending what many referred to as The Great War, one of the most catastrophic wars the world has ever seen.  The conflict lasted four years, and those who fought in it endured some of the most brutal forms of warfare ever known. 

In 1915, Canadian John McCrae was inspired to write a poem after presiding over the funeral of a friend and soldier who had been killed in the Second Battle of Ypres (in the Flanders region of Belgium).  McCrae observed how poppies grew over the graves of the fallen soldiers, and wrote one of the most well-known poems of the war.  Its publication resulted in the poppy becoming the most recognized memorial symbol for soldiers who died in conflict.

In honor of Veterans Day (formerly Armistice Day in the US) recognized November 11, and Armistice and Remembrance Day observances around the world, the beautiful poem is worth sharing.

         In Flanders Fields

        By John McCrae (1915)

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.