“War must be, while we defend our lives against a destroyer who would devour all; but I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend.” J.R.R. Tolkien, The Two Towers

Today at 11am we will remember those who have lost their lives in the line of duty. 

Thank you to Wiki for reminding me why we have the 2 minute silence at the Cenotaph today:

“The central ritual at cenotaphs throughout the Commonwealth is a stylised night vigil. The Last Post was the common bugle call at the close of the military day, and the Rouse was the first call of the morning. For military purposes, the traditional night vigil over the slain was not just to ensure they were indeed dead and not unconscious or in a coma, but also to guard them from being mutilated or despoiled by the enemy, or dragged off by scavengers. This makes the ritual more than just an act of remembrance but also a pledge to guard the honour of war dead. The act is enhanced by the use of dedicated cenotaphs (literally Greek for “empty tomb”) and the laying of wreaths—the traditional means of signalling high honours in ancient Greece and Rome”

Regular readers will know that we like to support charities dear to our heart – and one of those is the Royal British Legion

We wanted to set up a charity prize draw – but that proved to be a very complicated idea so we are keeping it simple now. We are selling this Original Acrylic Painting © Alyson Sheldrake aptly entitled ‘Poppy’ for only £75 GBP on our website – and we will donate 50% of the profits to the charity.

The painting is an original, signed by me, the artist, and comes with a Certificate of Authenticity. It is framed with a concealed frame and comes ready to hang – it is designed to ‘float’ off the wall and is sized 40 cm x 40cm – it’s lovely!

So – why this is this charity special for us?

Well – here’s why:

The Royal British Legion were always a charity dear to our parents’ hearts, and the charity still help serving members of the Armed Forces, ex-Service men and women (veterans), their families and dependants all year-round.

Today is also the day that we always stop to remember our own dads – and moms (mine helped build Lancaster Bombers and Dave’s mom drove a winch!) and also the serving troops today that are still risking their lives across the world in the name of peace.

So that’s why we are supporting such a worthwhile and recognisable charity.