Today we went to the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire, I’d never been there before and didn’t know what to expect. It turned out to be surprising for an unusual reason.
The arboretum contains a huge number of memorials to different people involved in various conflicts. Obvious among them are the armed forces, but they also have memorials to the fire and rescue service, the ambulance service, the Army Dog Unit, police forces around the world, the Free Spirit Horse memorial, to Forgiveness, and most heartbreakingly the ‘Shot at Dawn’ memorial which remembers soldiers suffering from PTSD who were shot for deserting. There are so many memorials, so many brave people involved in helping with various aspects of war, but there is nothing more emotionally charged than that one.
The sheer size of the site alone brings home the scale of war. The main memorial in the middle with 19,000 names added since 1945, reminds us that apparently civilised society isn’t done with stupidity yet
The large central memorial on the hillock, where they hold the remembrance ceremony on 11/11, was the place that affected me the most. I felt that I had to walk past every single panel in the structure, and even though I didn’t have time to read every name, I must at least witness them. I just couldn’t walk past them without showing some respect. My life was built by their blood, my safety came at their expense. My ability to moan about first world problems is their gift to me. It cost them, and their families and friends, everything.
Emotionally surprising lessons
I found myself wondering why I was so emotional. Yes, the place is beautiful, but there’s no overt attempt to engage your emotions, it’s simply left to the truth to do that.
I was talking to my sister-in-law about my feelings, which bought about the realisation that I’m glad I felt so emotional, I’m glad I felt those emotions, I’m grateful that I can feel.
To me personally, a lot of the problems we have in our society today are because we can’t connect to each other. We’ve become a society who sit behind computer screens, play games on our phones, text instead of talking to the people at the table in a restaurant, sometimes clearly a partner.
This reminded me of the words of a popular song from the past that has turned out to be pure prediction:
“And in the naked light I saw, ten thousand people, maybe more. People talking without speaking, people hearing without listening, people writing songs that voices never share. No one dared, disturb the sound of silence.”
Paul Simon: The Sound of Sience.
The fact that many of us spend so much time alone, some even preferring to work from home, and spend time in front of the TV instead of having fun with others, and talking. We break up via text, or we ghost people until they get the message.
I know that folks are different and I’m sure many of you out there are very social, but in truth I know few people that are now, myself included. I live a quiet life I could never have imagined as a younger person, not through choice, through the changes of time.
Which is why I’m profoundly grateful that I can still feel, still connect to emotion, still feel for others. Still be moved by such outright horror and stupidity that costs too many lives that no one has a right to take on behalf of any race, country, or flag.
I came away from today emotional, and even more committed to world peace. Today was a good day, and everyone should visit that place.
“Fools said I, ‘You do not know, silence like a cancer grows. Hear my words that I might teach you. Take my arms that I might reach you’, But my words like silent raindrops fell, and echoed in the wells of silence.”
Paul Simon: The Sound of Silence.
Hear my words, take my hand, for the sake of the world, the future, and the children. Be their voice. 19,000 names is enough, it’s 19,000 too many on top of millions too many.
Deb xx
Deb Hawken - Amorah 