Posted by CKLWlover I think of my step-father going on the beach at Dieppe with the Royal Regiment of Canada from Toronto ... then going back again to hit the beach on D-Day, and then participate in the liberation of hundreds of thousands of starving people in Holland. I hope you'll give some thought to taking in the ceremonies this year.
on November 1, 2009, 8:34 pm, in reply to "Re: Poppy Protocol..a bit off topic"
207.161.132.131 | Message modified by user CKLWlover November 1, 2009, 8:43 pm
The Poppy should be worn on the left lapel, as close to the heart as possible.
I must say I'm highly impressed that you asked, and care enough to do it correctly.
The second Cadet who made the error and pinned it on your right side must have been new.
Wearing a Poppy has always meant a great deal to me .. going right back to maybe grade one, when I first started to hear why a Poppy is worn and what & who it represents.
I've been attending Remembrance Day Ceremonies for over 40 years ... without fail, every single year except one about 25 years ago. That time, I had been out late the night before and decided I would watch the service from Ottawa on the CBC.
Well, I watched all right ... I watched hundreds of veterans, some being pushed in wheelchairs, some limping, some much, much older than me, and many that had known deprivation, and heart accelerating terror beyond my wildest nightmares.
It was a cold, windy morning in Ottawa and there was a mixture of snow and drizzle while the veterans were marching to the cenotaph.
Frankly, I felt like a real piece of work ... so I'd had a little too much booze and late night, and here I was at home with a measly hang-over. Compared to the way those vets must have felt while marching in the sleet, I felt wonderful.
I felt like a lazy scumbag, and have never missed a Remembrance Day Ceremony since, nor will I ever, as long as I'm able to get to the service.
Remembrance Day is a time for people to reflect upon how we obtained what we enjoy today. Two minutes is all it takes, once per year.
I think of one of my grandfathers at Vimy Ridge, wounded once by German machine gun fire, and how he was hit a second time by shrapnel from artillery fire as he lay on a stretcher at the Field Hospital awaiting first aid for the gunshot wound.
I also think of my friends and acquaintances that have gone on Peace Keeping missions or served in the Canadian Armed Forces and failed to survive action or accidents.
There is a superb song which describes my thoughts perfectly ... "Its a Pittance Of Time" by Terry Kelly. Here's a link on YouTube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4NZsD0zjAQ
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