How to wear, when to wear, how to remove a Poppy
Why do we wear a Poppy on Remembrance Day?
The symbol of Remembrance Day is the red poppy, which grows on the First World War battlefields of Flanders (in Belgium) and northern France. The poppy as a symbol of death and renewal predates the First World War and dates back as far as the Napoleonic wars in the 19th century. The seeds of the flower may remain dormant in the earth for years, but they will blossom in abundance when the soil is disturbed. As the artillery barrages began to churn the earth in late 1914, the fields of Flanders and northern France saw scores of red poppies appear.
The first person to use the poppy as a symbol of remembrance was Moina Michael, a member of the American Overseas YMCA, who had been inspired by Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae’s poem “In Flanders Fields.” Michael pledged “always to wear a red poppy of Flanders Fields as a sign of remembrance and the emblem of ‘keeping the faith with all who died,’” referencing a line in the poem.
Wear a Poppy to honour and remember Canada’s Veterans!
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Sources: https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/remembrance-day-poppy
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