Armistice Day

I love the fact that there seems to be a resurgence of taking of part in the 2 minutes silence and remembrance services across the country. Both Twitter and Facebook were full of poppies and poems honouring the fallen. Maybe the recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan have brought home to people what sacrifices are brave armed forces are still making today.

BBC News Coverage

As a family we have been very lucky not to have lost any close family members in any conflict. In fact my granny's Uncle Alex survived the Battle of Omdurman in Sudan alongside Winston Churchill! My maternal grandfather was called up in 1918 but his platoon was infected with Spanish Influenza before they could get sent to the front and he missed the war. By the time of the Second World War he was too old to fight. My paternal grandfather was not medically fit for active combat in WW2 and my grandmother's brother survived the war in the Far East (luckily only involved in the re-taking of land from the Japanese). 


In fact our family has always had reason to be happy on the 11th of November as it was the day my grandparents married in 1939:

Last year they celebrated their 70th anniversary, this year we lost my grandfather and so for the first time in 71 years my granny wasn't celebrating on the 11th. Armistice Day and Remembrance Sunday have always been poignant for me and now it is even more so.