.

　　It was also decided that 11 November should be observed every year as Remembrance Day. On 11 November, at 11am, many people stand silent for two minutes, to remember those killed in the two World Wars and in other conflicts. It is also common for people to wear little red flowers – called poppies- made of cloth. Real poppies flowered all over the battlefields in Flanders in the First World War, because the destruction caused by the fighting created good conditions for them. The red poppy has become Britain’s national symbol for Remembrance Day. On the second Sunday in November, there are special Remembrance services in most churches in Britain, and parades of ex-servicemen, and ceremonies at war memorials.

　　For a time, in the 1960s and 1970s, Remembrance Day became less important. A new generation had grown up since the end of the second World War. And many older people did not want to think back to the war years any longer – for them, the loss of friends and relatives, the bombing, the queues to buy food, and the general hardship of life in wartime were things they wanted to forget. It even seemed possible that Remembrance Day would slowly fade away. But since the 1990s, Remembrance Day has been back in fashion, strongly encouraged by our government. Indeed, more people seem to observe the two minutes silence today than at any time I can remember.

　　I wonder what people are remembering when they stand in silence. There are, I believe, only 5 people still alive in Britain who fought in the first World War. People who fought in the second World War are all 80 years old or older. So most people who stand in silence on Remembrance Day are not thinking about specific people – relatives, friends, army comrades, work colleagues – who died. Perhaps they are thinking about war and conflict generally; or perhaps they are thinking about something completely different, like what to cook for supper. (That is the wonderful thing about thinking – it is completely private. No-one but you knows what you are thinking about.)

　　And now I am going to say something controversial – that means, something which some people may disagree with strongly. It is right to remember those who died in the great wars of the 20th century. It is right also to remember that most of those who died were not British. And it is important also to find a way to leave the past behind; because otherwise we cannot properly face the problems of today.