Remembrance Day 11-11-11

Today the 11th of November has been Remembrance Day here in Australia. At 11.00 am on November 11 1918 the armistice was signed to end World War 1. Australia was only a young nation in 1918 and 60 000 of its young men had lost their lives during WW1. A horrendous number considering our total population at the time was only 5,080,912 (source Australia Bureau of Statistics). Each year at  the eleventh hour on the eleventh day of the eleventh month we pause to remember all those who have served for our country. It is traditional for people to buy and wear poppies that are sold by the Returned and Services League.

My great great uncle was killed in France in 1917 and my great great grandmother sent this message to the army asking about the welfare of her son. When we consider that we have instant communication this day and age we can only imagine how she was feeling as she was anxiously awaiting  a reply. Arthur went missing on May 3 and she penned this letter on September 22.

I have spent the last two days at our school athletics carnival and today at 11.00 we had a short and solemn ceremony of remembrance. One of my students played the Last Post on the cornet and it was a very moving and emotional ceremony.

I tried to snap a photo from where I was at 11.11 am but was a minute late in doing so, but close to 11 minutes past 11 on the 11-11.