It’s important we all continue to wear poppies with pride - Christa Ackroyd
We marched from our little wooden hut to the church with flags flying, often joined by old soldiers proudly wearing their medals. We knew why we were there.
There was talk of freedom, of what might have befallen this country were it not for the brave men who had fought to save us from a German invasion.
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Hide AdWe remembered the women who had stepped up to play their part too and those who had stayed behind waiting for the telegram.


Every adult wore a poppy pinned onto smart suits and coats as we remembered those who gave their lives for us and those whose lives were altered forever.
It was the 1960s. The generation, including my parents, who had lived through the war made sure we knew the significance of the poppy.
My granny, who had witnessed two bitter conflicts in less than 30 years, came with us to church where she remembered a 19 year old brother who never came home, still mourned and never forgotten, a reminder that every family had been touched by the sacrifice made by a loved one, a husband, a lover, a son or a brother.
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Hide AdAnd at the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month we stopped whatever we were doing and stood wherever we were, in silence, to commemorate the exact moment hostilities officially ended in World War I.
It didn’t matter where we were. We could be at a football match, shopping in town, in the butchers – it was the unwritten law. We knew what armistice meant.
It was the document signed between the allies and Germany at Compiègne in France in the early hours of that very same morning with an agreement that the cessation of fighting would come into force at 11am.
Those of us who studied modern history were even taught in school that that document expired after 36 days and had to be extended several times before the formalities of peace were made permanent with the Treaty of Versailles the following June.
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Hide AdIt was for us living history witnessed by those we lived with. And if we had any questions we could ask those who were there. Not that many were keen to talk about it.
But they made sure we knew of the relevance of Remembrance Day and how it should be observed.
We therefore knew the significance of the poppy, not just because we were taught in schools, but because we lived amongst those who always wore theirs with both pride and personal sadness.
In later life, as wars followed in the Falklands, the Gulf and Afghanistan, we remembered those who fell there too. To be at the repatriation of the six Yorkshire soldiers who died in Afghanistan was a sombre experience and a huge responsibility as a journalist.
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Hide AdI have never witnessed such sadness or such respect as the six coffins draped in the Union flag were driven through the streets.
It was our young men coming home in death, something not even awarded to so many in the two World Wars who were buried where they fell and a reminder that lives are still being lost in conflict and other lives shattered.
It is something I think about a lot. And yet it is said that one in three schoolchildren don’t understand the significance of the poppy, the symbol of commemoration taken from the battle fields of the first world war. But that is our fault not theirs.
We are the educators who have taken over from a largely lost generation of those who were there. The task is now ours.
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Hide AdWhat’s more statistics can be twisted any way we like. Take another poll which shows that eight in ten adults believe it is important to commemorate Remembrance Day.
Fifty per cent of very young adults agree. More than half of us all say we will still wear the poppy and two in five of us will observe the two minutes silence.
And if one in three Millennials or Gen Z (under 25s ) say they will don the official symbol of remembrance, they are actually among the biggest group to say they want to know more and will find out by speaking to relatives about their experiences of war, visiting a museum or exhibition or doing their own research. Which can only be a good thing.
That the majority say they will still mark the day is to their credit. Perhaps it is up to us to show solidarity with the past and in doing so provoke the questions they are so keen to have answered. And that means wearing the poppy ourselves.
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Hide AdIn my day I was surrounded by reasons to support the Royal British Legion in their quest for remembrance because I lived with those who remembered only too well.
Now it is up to us to pass on the significance to the next generation. But it isn’t easy.
The phrase World War III is being bandied about as if it is merely an academic exercise and our TV news is full of pictures of death and destruction that in my view are so graphic many have stopped watching and certainly would never allow children to watch.
I understand there is the need to show the shocking results of armed conflict but there is still a line of respect and dignity in death for those who have lost their lives which I believe we are crossing all too often as if it’s a bad movie not a shocking depiction of real life.
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Hide AdAnd if people can’t actually watch then that defeats the whole object.
It is up to all of us to pass on the mantle of remembrance to future generations. And wearing the poppy is one way of doing it.
Some will deliberately choose not to and there are many who see the poppy as a symbol of war. But that is too easy an excuse, a cop out.
I think it is worth us all pausing for a moment to consider why we wear one. Or why we should.
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Hide Ad“Remembrance does not glorify war. And its symbol, the red poppy, is a sign of both Remembrance and hope for a peaceful future.” So say the Royal British Legion. And they should know.
Since they opened the 27 million pound Battle Back centre at Lilleshall in the West Midlands in 2009 more than 7,000 injuries or serving soldiers have attended sports or adventure training aimed at promoting self confidence or recovery.
They support families in crisis, either through rehabilitation or debt advice and are there for those suffering mental health issues, even alcohol abuse. Almost 40,000 attend their advice centres each year. Their work is ongoing and important.
The Royal British Legion also works to combat homelessness and isolation and employment issues. The organisation born out of conflict is not simply there to dish out a few kind words. Nor are they a part of the past.
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Hide AdBut you do not need me to tell you why we must all wear our poppies with pride. Lest We Forget means more than a well trotted out phrase.
It is a reminder that lessons not learned from the past endanger our future.
And that means all of us.
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