h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Lest we forget.Several generations have passed since the horror of world war last descended on our planet, and I feel that the debt that we owe those brave men and women who fought for our freedom across the globe is not always recognised by those of my age and younger. I was in Lakeside Shopping Centre on Saturday 11th and stood in awe as young and old, black and white, men and women all stood in respectful silence in honour of the sacrifices made by our ancestors, and in gratitude for those who still live among us. I'm only 28. I've grown up in a land, thankfully, not ravaged by the terror of war but many of my contempories do not seem to understand or appreciate what these people gave for us.The silence in Lakeside was not all consuming,however.There were some who carried on walking,pushing through the stationary people as if their lives depended on it;funny how the emphasis changes over the years;there was one company that left it's music blaring into the malls, ruining the dignified calm. This is simply not good enough. For one day a year, for only two minutes, surely we can all stop to reflect on the pains that these people endured for us, and to remember the cause of people who don't rank as highly in photogenic charity shots as starving foreign children, but need our support just as much.We should make certain that our children understand the importance of remembering those slain, even by the token gesture of buying and wearing a poppy with pride.The Poppy Appeal is not just for those who died in the Great Wars, it is for all those who have given for our country what many of us could not even contemplate;their lives.