This past weekend, while I was out running errands with my daughter, she received a small red flower from a man in front of the grocery store (after I made a small donation into his collection bucket). The gentleman wished us a happy Poppy Day, and my daughter turned to me and asked if she got presents for Poppy Day (obviously confusing these gentlemen with the men who ring the Salvation Army's bells at Christmas time).Never one to miss the opportunity to give one of my children a civics lesson, I explained to her that the armistice ending The First World War ("The Great War") was signed on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month: November 11th, 1918. I told her that we celebrate this day to honor all of the men and women who have served our country in the military, and that is why she had a long, four-day weekend.
When she asked me, "Why did the men give us a flower?" I told her that these flowers, poppies, grow all over the fields of Flanders (in northern Belgium), where so many of the men who were killed in that war are buried. I told her about the famous poem that commemorates the sacrifice of these men "In Flanders Fields" and while she can only barely comprehend these notions, she understood that the Poppy was symbolic and she proudly wore the flower on her dress the rest of the day.
After having this conversation with my daughter, it struck me that not enough people really know or understand the meaning of the poppy (as a symbol of this day) nor what our vacation day actually commemorates.
To most Americans, Poppy Day is better known as "Veterans Day" honoring all of America's Veterans. Europeans commemorate November 11th as "Armistice Day", while citizens of the Commonwealth know 11/11 as "Remembrance Day", and in Poland armistice day is also celebrated as that country's independence day.
Given that so many countries celebrate this day as a way to honor those who have served their countries as well as those who are serving, how is it that our children (and many of us) have come to "forget" the day's meaning? I could blame the usual cast of characters, our educational system, our consumer-oriented culture, generational changes, or a hugely unpopular war that makes it passé to remember Thomas Jefferson's admonition that "Liberty needs to be watered regularly with the blood of tyrants and patriots."
What is missing isn't a physical space or thing. There are monuments and reminders in nearly every corner of our towns, states and nations commemorating the sacrifices of the men and women in our military. The content of what these men and women have done is certainly not lacking. In fact with the election of the United States' first African-American president (and all of the historical comparisons drawn by our media) there is quite a bit of content and context to accompany these physical objects commemorating our veterans.
The actions that bind the content and these objects together are what are missing. When I was a child all of my friends knew what the poppy stood for. Our grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles, and teachers made sure we knew why they wore poppies to church on Sunday or on Veteran's Day. Our pastors recalled the sacrifice made by others when they called upon us for two-minutes of silent remembrance. We knew why we flew our flags on these days and we watched as military color guards raised their flags to half-mast.
Certainly, these actions still happen. But my daughter's question made me realize that they are no longer part of our society's lexicon. The ritual associated with these actions does not exist any longer. Which if not shameful, is at least a shame.
Nearly 10 million military personnel died during The First World War. The poem, "In Flanders Fields", was written by a Canadian military physician, Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, to commemorate just one of those deaths. He penned these words on May 13, 1915, in the trenches on the battlefront -- one day after he witnessed the death of his friend Lieutenant Alexis Helmer:
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.
No matter if you are a hawk or a dove, for or against our current military policies, as you enjoy your day off from work or school, as you curse when you walk to the mailbox only to recall that today isn't a mail day, or hear the mournful wail of a far off bugle playing Taps at a ceremony honoring the service of those men and women who ensure our security, past and present...
Please put a poppy in your lapel, display your flag, or stop and observe 2 minutes of silence at 11:11 A.M. today and let us remember those who gave their "last full measure of devotion" -- in Flanders Fields, and elsewhere.
