Let's Avoid Making the Humble Poppy a Far-Right Symbol
Perhaps I have been living under a stone, but I had no idea, nor have my friends and acquaintances, that the symbolic poppy has been hijacked by the far right. (Neil Mackay, “The poppy has been hijacked by the far right – this is why I won’t wear it,” November 6).
Personal Family History
My recently deceased father survived the Normandy landings. His own father was severely injured at Passchendaele by a shell and was evacuated to the Netley receiving hospital on Southampton Water. Despite his injuries, he refused to have his legs amputated. He was moved through 12 other hospitals before returning to Passchendaele to fight in all weathers, wearing his kilt.
When he passed away, he still carried a piece of shrapnel dangerously near his spine and had a hole in his buttock large enough that a fist could fit inside.
Neil Mackay: "Why I can't risk wearing a poppy this year"
My mother’s boyfriend was lost with all hands when HMS Kite was torpedoed in 1944, a fact my father had only recently shared with me. This loss affected my mother profoundly for her entire life.
Respect for Sacrifice and Remembrance
Such is the dedication and fortitude of those who served to defend our democracy and country. My father instilled in us the importance of supporting the Earl Haig Fund and wearing the poppy with the phrase, “Lest we forget.”
"I remember him standing to attention, tears in his eyes, during the minute’s silence every year on the eleventh day of the eleventh hour of the eleventh month."
Author's Reflection
The poppy remains a profound symbol of sacrifice and remembrance, whose meaning should not be overshadowed or claimed by any political faction.
Would you prefer a more formal or conversational tone for the author’s reflection?