I have written about Leicester's war memorial before - it's aligned so that the sun will rise through it on November 11th - something I've wanted to see for the last five years but which the weather has never allowed. Even, or perhaps particularly, when it's blowing a gale and lashing with rain the war memorial is a moving place to find yourself at sunrise on a November morning, this one sits in on the edge of a large park next to Leicester university with a view down across the city and at 7 am everything conspires to make you contemplate the sacrifice it represents and your own mortality.
Today was a perfect sunrise, cold and frosty with a clear sky - it really was very beautiful. There was one other girl there waiting for the same thing we were, and a few dog walkers who didn't stop to look. I'm not sure if I'm grateful that we had that moment almost to ourselves or sorry that it wasn't more widely shared. I did think it a shame that the BBC vans coming to set up for the coming parade had arrived 20 minutes to late to see what we did.
Lyn at I Prefer Reading has posted a Wilfred Owen poem today - Futility - that is particularly apt to go with a sunrise, but there were other things that came to mind up there this morning whilst watching a couple of students stagger back home which were altogether more hopeful, and that's the power of the place - that it's both sombre and celebratory.
Wow. Thank you for sharing that moment and image, it is truly memorable!
ReplyDeleteYou would have loved it Diana
DeleteJust beautiful, thank you.
ReplyDeleteA bit of a cliché but it really was a magical morning, maybe because I don't see a lot of sunrises (not a morning person) but this really seemed special.
DeleteStunning pictures. I was watching the memorial parades today and it was such a beautiful morning. All the more poignant somehow.
ReplyDeleteIt does make a difference doesn't it. Monday was such a grim morning as well. The parades always bring home how many people were lost, there was something about the memorial at sunrise that was basically uplifting. I'm really pleased I saw it like that at last.
DeleteBeautiful pictures & lovely symbolism, isn't it? That's why I like the poem, Futility. Our Shrine of Remembrance has a similar feature here in Melbourne but with daylight savings, the sun doesn't shine through until 12 o'clock. It does mean people can go the service then wait inside the Shrine for the sun to hit the plaque on the floor.
ReplyDeleteIt is lovely symbolism Lyn, I used to be quite dismissive about remembrance Sunday but find it more significant as the years pass. I get the impression that it's become a bigger thing here over the last decade or so, but it may be that I'm just more sensitive to it than I once was.
DeleteWhat gorgeous photos - and very moving. What a special tribute to the soldiers of the First World War.
ReplyDeleteOn another topic entirely, I tagged you for a meme on my site, if you're interested!
Litlove - I've been rubbish at keeping up with blogs over the last couple of weeks, but went and had a look and will definitely do that meme. I'm in the mood for lists and the like at the moment and this one looks like fun.
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