Preparing to set off to the office this morning, I struggled, fingers and thumbs, as I tried so carefully to secure my poppy in situ for fear that the gusting winds and rain would cause this to become dislodged.
Today, of course, is Armistice Day. As I would expect of many, I could not envisage venturing out on this day without this most reverent symbol of respect for those that made the ultimate sacrifice in defence of the freedom that nowadays we seem to take for granted.
As I strode toward Highgate station it was to my sadness and surprise that I became aware of the number of people I passed absent of this traditional mark of remembrance.
Such was my astonishment that I took it upon myself to study my fellow passengers and see just how many were wearing a poppy and if indeed there was any consistency amongst those with poppy and those without.
Naturally, perhaps, I assumed that the more elderly folk would adhere to this tradition, but no, the first of my older generation, a well to do gent in dark overcoat and hat, was bereft of poppy and the first person I spotted with a poppy was a young girl of Asian background.
Scouring the commuters seated in my carriage and standing around me, a mixture of young and middle aged men and women of various ethnicities, not a poppy was to be seen. Then as a space appeared in my line of vision I finally spotted a man, maybe in his late 30’s, attired in suit and tie, with poppy pinned to his lapel.
After leaving the tube and taking the short walk to the office I failed to spot a single person with a poppy; passing an aged, archetypal city type in his luxurious camel coat, surely this man… but no…
Now maybe I am doing some of these people a disservice, maybe, like me, they were concerned that they would lose their poppy and instead had this hidden inside their briefcase or bag or had it pinned to their inner clothing, but surely the point of the poppy is to wear this on display.
As we approached 11.00GMT when a bugler from the Scots Guards was to mark the start of the two-minute silence by playing the Last Post, I wondered if London would indeed fall silent in remembrance. Will iPods be switched off? Will laptops be sent to sleep? Will the telephones in our office cease to ring? I recall a time some years ago when I sought to end a telephone call explaining that we were approaching 11:00 and the gruff response I received. Clearly for some business will always come first!
Perhaps it is different now that the threat is not as demonstrable as it was following the First and Second World Wars. Opinions have changed and questions are raised as to whether we should even be fighting the war in Afghanistan.
But at this time when it seems that almost every day news reports tell of another member of the armed forces lost in Afghanistan, surely the poignancy of this day cannot be lost on the nation?
As I stepped outside my office to observe the silence, the traffic continued to flow past, people went about their business and so I was simply left to stand silent in my own private contemplation.
Lest we forget… Sadly I fear many already have...
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