While we were in London we noticed that the British Royal Legion was in middle of its Poppy Appeal, a fund raiser held in conjunction with Remembrance Day, their equivalent of our Veterans Day and also celebrated on November 11. At Westminster Abbey, poppies were displayed on small wooden crosses in a Field of Remembrance to honor those who had died in service to their country, and they were also offering poppies to wear on your lapel for a donation of any size.
I was reminded of the small paper poppies from my childhood that people in this country used to wear on Veterans Day. They may still be worn, but it’s been years since I have seen any. So in honor of Veterans Day, coming up this Wednesday, I am reposting something I wrote last year.
A Sunday Favorite
On this Veterans Day I am reminded of my father, Captain Thomas Benton Walker, Sr., who served with the Timberwolves during World War II in Germany, France and Belgium.
After reading Scott Turow's Ordinary Heroes I became intrigued by The War and started going through a scrapbook that my Aunt Sissy, Daddy's sister, compiled with letters, photos and other things Daddy sent home from Europe. Unfortunately, I didn't even know about the scrapbook's existence until after Daddy died.I'm sorry I never took the time to talk to him more about his experiences, but I'm not sure he would have shared much anyway.
Happy Veterans Day to all who have served in the armed forces, and especially those who served in war time.
12 comments:
lovely post. i've never heard of the poppies, until we did a tour in England. it's a lovely gesture.. not unlike our yellow ribbons of today. oh.. and welcome home!! our boys gave you a WIN for your homecoming! woo pig sooie! :D
have a great week! -Tracie
Great post! Yes the poppies bring back memories!!!
Oh I love London!!! It is a great city!!
Beautiful post girl...this I really loved...May you have a great Sunday....Hugs and smiles Gl♥ria
They still do the poppy thing here in CA!
Your daddy was a handsome guy!
Lucky you! I'm ready for a return trip to London! I love it there.
I've never heard of the poppy thing. Thank you so much for sharing that!
{{{HUGS}}}
Robin :o)
You know what, I haven't seen those poppies in years. I remember wearing them. I am going to search for a picture. I have a post set up for Wednesday in honor of our Veterans and it would be awesome to post one. Thank you.
I have a poppy for my coat lapel...we went to a service every year at an American Cemetary called Brookwood in Surrey...always really moving.
Looking forward to seeing some pictures-hope you had a great trip!
I remember the red poppy's they sold for Veteran's day. Wonder if it was done just in certain area's or nation wide?
Hi Kathy...
So happy to have you join in with Sunday Favorites this week, my friend! Wow...you're just coming back from London? That's awesome! I will be looking forward to a few posts about your adventure!
You know...I never knew that red poppies were used in remembrance of our war veterens! What is the symbolic gesture behind choosing the red poppy, do you know? I'm just curious! The cemetery at Westminster Abbey is really beautiful...I'm so thankful to all of those dear men and women who gave their lives for us!!!
Girl, your father looks so very young in his military photo! Just a boy really! What an awesome gift...to be able to go through your Aunt's scrapbook of your Dad's military memories!!! What a treasure!!!
Thank you so much for sharing this post with us today...
Warmest wishes,
Chari
Great post and I'm glad that you reposted! We should all remember our veteran's.
Lovely tribute.
Your Razorbacks ROCKED on Saturday!
What a handsome man your daddy was. If we knew when we were children what we know now, we would have asked a lot more questions. laurie
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