A really great day today…sharing in the 100 year celebration of the end of WWI. As residents, we attended and were so moved by it. Even in our little town, so many people gathered at 11 at the Mairie, assembled, and marched through town to the War Memorial.
At the ceremony, the Mayor of Lalinde welcomed everyone, then several letters from soldiers were read. The local school children then read the names of residents who perished in the war, year by year. So sad.
A flower arrangement was officially placed on the memorial, then each school child holding a white balloon placed a red rose on the memorial. A trumpet played The Last Post as a thanks to the dead, and a Minute of Silence was observed. The children sang the Marseillaise and everyone rejoiced.
After the ceremony, everyone gathered in the Place de la Republic (our central square) and shared a glass of champange to honor those who fought and the kids let their white balloons go into the sky all at once!
We feel so honored to know (and be good friends) with Ken, who will be 90 next year, and fought in WWII for England. Only on Armistice Day, can he wear his father’s medals from WWI. Ken’s own medals are on his left side, close to his heart, and his dad’s medals are on his right side, with one of them 104 years old! He proudly carries the Commradeship Association flag.
Nearly every town has their own war memorial with those lost from the immediate community lovingly listed on the monuments. Here are a few from local villages.
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- War Memorial in Mausac, France
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- Calés, France
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- Tremolat, France
Then we enjoyed a lovely fall day in the Dordogne.
And Alfie says “Oof.”
It really was a very moving and special day here in Vence as well.
Beautiful pics.
Sending you big hugs.
Thanks, Nadia. I saw the pics from Vence, as well. Very moving. Big hugs back at you!
What a lovely and impactful event. We Americans are so jaded, we lost many in both
WWI and WW2 both and while many American families suffered losses, we didn’t have to live with being in the physical middle of a war, or having the war being fought in our towns, with storm troopers marching down our streets and being so close to the dead and wounded on a daily basis The courage and fortitude these people demonstrated, the deep effect the war had and still has on all of the citizens continues to this day. It is not so close to home here, and our memorial services are not so widely attended or are our veterans appreciated so much. Such a shame. Thanks for sharing this.
Oh Pat, that’s exactly what I was trying to say. You put that so eloquently. It really was so moving and we have so much respect. Thanks for the note! Hugs.