'Lest we forget' by Letitia Mason
Last week my community choir sang in an Armistice Pilgrimage. We went to seven local churches and a school during the week offering a selection of poems, anthems, and hymns to commemorate Armistice. Our director had arranged a beautiful programme; and tears were shed during the performances. In addition to singing I was asked to read a poem by Wilfred Owen called the Send-off. https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/57369/the-send-off A family ancestor who fought in World War 1 The thoughts expressed in the poem are uncomfortable, and this is reflected in the shifting metre of the lines. I found it difficult to read. Owen’s skill in capturing the glory, the sacrifice and the sadness of war in so few words continues to resonate down the years. A verbal snapshot of an everyday scene; a fly captured in amber, turning the mundane to a glowing gem. Remembrance poppies will be cast in the bin, but the words and thou...