I really think that in tough times, we turn to tradition and the things that are really important for support. It's something to grab hold of and hold onto in tough times.
I am always moved by the events that mark our period of remembrance here in the UK. We do things well here. We may not be the best at making things any more and our industries are a mere shadow of what they used to be, but we are certainly masters of ceremony.
It is fair to say that the act of remembrance this year is perhaps far stronger than ever. The recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan have added to the list of fallen young men and women and those who have been wounded, some severely. I can never begin to understand what it would be like to lose someone close, but I do know that it would be impossible to carry on if anything happened to my son. The loss is enormous and total in its effect.
For the first time in many years, I do feel the young people of today are able to relate more closely to these events. They are not just remembering those who gave their lives in the past conflicts and World Wars, often symbolised by old sepia worn photographs, but they are remembering many not much older than themselves lost in the current fields of conflict. The losses are not just from a time of long ago, they are current.
Lest we forget...
