Poppies

The Poppy flower is recognised world over as a visual pledge to say ‘we will remember them’. On the 11^th Hour of the 11^th day of the 11^th month in 1918 the First World War ended, now every year the humble weed adorns the lapels of citizens of the UK, America, Canada, New Zealand and Australia as a symbol of respect.

It has been commonly stated that the poppy was chosen because of the poem written by John McCrae in 1915 – ‘In Flanders Fields’, which first two lines depict how ‘In flanders fields the poppies blow between the crosses, row on row’. It seemed a fitting tribute to the blood spilt by the young men on these fields. The poppies blossomed where their bodies fell.

Poppies

In 1922 Major George Hawson, a young officer, formed the Disabled Society. This was to help disabled men and women from WW1. He suggested that the society could make poppies to help raise funds and awareness. The first poppy factory was set up and the poppies were designed to be easy to  assemble for the workers with disabilities. This principle still stands today.

Poppies are obviously most well known for their part in Remembrance Day, however, they have long been a symbol of both sleep and death. Sleep because of the opium that can be extracted from them and death because of the common blood-red colour of the red poppy in particular. This dates back as far as Greek and Roman myths where poppies were used as offerings to the dead and they were used as emblems on tombstones to symbolise eternal sleep.

Apart from being a beautiful flower for the garden and a symbol of respect, the poppy also has many medical uses. Ancient Egyptians would have their patients eat the seeds to relieve pain; modern scientist can now explain that poppy seeds contain both morphine and codeine. The opium poppy is still picked for food and drugs these days, so much so that the worldwide production has to be monitored by international agencies.

So the next time you see a poppy flower fluttering in the breeze in your garden, admire it’s beauty, vibrancy and everything else it stands for.

Lest we forget.