Why it is still important to remember on Armistice Day

Each year at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, we as a nation stop for two minutes. More than a century after the guns first fell silent on the Western Front in 1918, Armistice Day and its message of remembrance is still relevant.

It forces us to confront the catastrophic human toll of war. Over 20 million lives were lost in the Great War by industrial scale slaughter that spread from the fields of Europe to a global conflict on land, sea and air, and was followed by much worse 20 years later with around 85 million deaths in the Second World War to defeat the evil of fascism. 

The red poppy remains our pledge never to forget those who sacrificed everything then -and in every conflict since.

For us in Northern Ireland, that pledge hits close to home. We carry the deep scars of violence on our own doorstep, where loved ones were stolen from our streets, lanes, fields, and family tables by terrorism.

When we bow our heads, we honour our own innocent lost alongside those on foreign battlefields.

As time distances us from the past, passing this memory to the next generation ensures we never take our freedom for granted in our hard won liberties.

Peace is never permanent; it demands vigilance, courage and prayer to maintain and we give thanks for all who served and continue to serve.

Armistice Day isn't just about looking back in grief—it is a forward promise that their sacrifice was not in vain, and that light will always defy the dark.

This is a little poem I penned for this year’s Armistice Day called "Through Banner's Call."  It looks at remembrance through a slightly different lens honouring not only those who served on distant fields for freedom, but also the quiet sacrifices endured at home.

Softly falls the crimson leaf,

In quiet honour, sharp with grief.

Not only in distant fields of red,

Or desert sands where soldiers bled.

But here, where dark green valleys sweep,

And misty hills of heather, their vigil keep.

In city, narrow lane and silent town,

Where shadows fell and sun went down.

Through Operation Banner's call,

They answered, standing firm and tall.

In steadfast duty, brave and tried,

Where hidden dangers lurk and hide.

They bore the weight through heavy years,

Of quiet courage, loss, and tears.

While pipes swell soft upon the breeze,

As marching steps at last decrease.

The bugle sounds its solemn strain,

Lest we forget, through peace and pain.

Stevan D. T. Patterson, Castlederg Co. Tyrone