Get a poppy, wear a poppy

It doesn’t have to be large and obvious – it could be as small and polite as this pin

from New Zealand

or larger and more flamboyant like these

earrings found in Australia, US Artist

This is not a day for going shopping, dealing with holiday decorations (hello? for those in the US – Thanksgiving isn’t even over!) or those idiots who are trying to capitalize on individuals service for their own personal gain.

“Thank you for your service” has become trite. Most say it with about as much meaning as people greet with “how are you doing?” Few really mean it, want an answer. In the US, it has become a pro forma way of passing off obligation to others. No, I agree that when one is created by someone who means it, you can tell. When you are greeted by someone else who has a family connection to the military, when someone recognizes that it is not only men that serve. I will save my American Legion rant for another day.

The US attitude toward the military has undergone a remarkable change since I was in high school and University. That was the time of the Viet Nam War. Patriots served, most of the men in my High School served. Being found unfit, in that rural area, was not a matter of pride (as it seems to have been for those with money in other areas of the country). At University, it was another world. Most of the young men in my classes were on academic deferments, a serious motivation to study. Protests ran often and deeply divided the campus. Even the International Folk Dance group, a non-political gaggle if there ever was one, had a serious discussion about continuing to use the Armory for the weekly dances. As no other space was available on Tuesday evening, political feelings took a back seat to practicality.

In the late 70s, post Viet Nam, when I joined the Army Reserves, being a part of the military was totally and completely unthought of. Why would anyone do that? The war is over. I had a slightly different attitude, spurred by school loans and a decision that those who served deserved health care. That and it would be a chance for someone else to pay me to get out of Minnesota at least once a year.

Seems rather superficial, now that I think about it from 41 years down the line. On the other hand, I doubt that everyone has completely altruistic reasons for their choices. But in 2013, two years after the Army invited me to retire, I was in Esperance, Western Australia. It was Remembrance Day, Armistice Day, Veteran’s Day – whatever you want to call it. Esperance is that Australian town which, in 1979, fined NASA for littering after the Sky Lab broke up and dropped pieces all over their town. It is also a place where knowledge and connection to WWI runs deeply.

I wrote about it then.* The experience of standing with veterans from Australia, New Zealand, UK, Canada. Talking to a woman who had deep ties to the area. Standing with other women who had served their countries. It made a difference to me, and I think it made a difference to others, knowing that, even in your small town which others might considered off the western edge of nowhere, that serving our respective countries binds us all together. That moment of silence, a chance for reflection.

So, for my fellow service members, wear your poppy with pride in recognition of all those generations prior to ours who served our respective countries. For everyone else, if you want to thank someone, be sincere and think about what you are saying. Better yet, wear a poppy today and tomorrow, reach out and do something positive. Participate at one of the cemetery clean-ups. Volunteer at a soup kitchen, deliver meals, reach out to those families you know with a member deployed. Bring my world a little closer to yours.

* the absence of pictures from posts prior to 2015 is a result of moving servers from Germany to the US. When the Germany site came down, the links were broken. I have to find the old picture archives and upload those one by one by one.. and .. there are other things that are higher on the priority list.

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About Holly

fiber person - knitter, spinner, weaver who spent 33 years being a military officer to fund the above. And home. And family. Sewing and quilting projects are also in the stash. After living again in Heidelberg after retiring (finally) from the U.S. Army May 2011, we moved to the US ~ Dec 2015. Something about being over 65 and access to health care. It also might have had to do with finding a buyer for our house. Allegedly this will provide me a home base in the same country as our four adult children, all of whom I adore, so that I can drive them totally insane. Considerations of time to knit down the stash…(right, and if you believe that…) and spin and .... There is now actually enough time to do a bit of consulting, editing. Even more amazing - we have only one household again. As long as everyone understands that I still, 40 years into our marriage, don't do kitchens or bathrooms. For that matter, not being a golden retriever, I don't do slippers or newspapers either. I don’t miss either the military or full-time clinical practice. Limiting my public health/travel med/consulting and lecturing to “when I feel like it” has let me happily spend my pension cruising, stash enhancing (oops), arguing with the DH about where we are going to travel next and book buying. Life is good!
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9 Responses to Get a poppy, wear a poppy

  1. Christine says:

    And in Germany this day is all about the beginning of the Karneval season !Kids in costumes were freezing there butts of, 4c and an icy wind.

    We have never been into Karneval …..

    • Holly says:

      I think there are a lot of challenges in Germany when looking at those who served in either World War. On the one hand, you want to respect those who fought and died for their country while not likely, agreeing with either the leadership or the reasons for the war in the first place. 

      • Christine says:

        and it is all about your government and the people that don’t want to know that most of the soldiers were just soldiers and did what they were told to do ….

  2. Ginny says:

    In NYC skirting the Veteran’s Day parade going from ship to La Guardia.

  3. Alison says:

    I can’t tell you how much I appreciated this. Thank you. And I hope social media and the on-line world is giving George enough to keep him occupied and happy while he’s dealing with everything.

  4. RIck says:

    Yes, I have been thinking about the day and will pause in just over an hour to give thanks to all of those, including you, who have sacrificed for our freedoms. I just wish those freedoms did not seem so much in jeopardy today….

  5. Valerie says:

    Interesting you were taking part in a local ceremony in Esperance on that cruise. We were off doing the Cape Le Grand NP and other natural sights around town. We will be back there in Feb next year, doing just the Bottom End again. I like the sound of the local museum. Will have to give it a go this time around.

  6. Pat says:

    I saw a poppy pin with a wonderful slogan. “All gave some. Some gave all.” Really brings it home.

  7. Ruth says:

    My dad, and presumably my uncles, served in WWII…Navy Seabees for dad. He nearly never spoke of it. My two oldest brothers were both Marines in Vietnam….one never speaks of it, the other, now gone a year plus, was a proud Marine (retired) to the end.

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