The Known Soldier

Beneath Sussex soil,
Not unknown, not forgotten,
Forever eighteen.



.... There are only a few "service" graves in the village churchyard, but those that there are have had the long grasses cleared; a jar of poppies and a branch of rosemary have been laid there. Others are commemorated at the war memorial, also now bedecked with poppies and rosemary.

The trees cast shadow patterns and the grasses sing for these poor souls who were sacrificed.

Update:

Why Rosemary?
We all know about Poppies for remembrance, but apparently the use of Rosemary is also a symbol of love and remembrance:

...in Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Ophelia says, "There’s rosemary, that’s for remembrance, pray you love, remember."

In Australia, sprigs of rosemary are worn on ANZAC Day and sometimes Remembrance Day to signify remembrance; the herb grows wild on the Gallipoli Peninsula


Rosemary is reputed to have got its name thus:
The Virgin Mary is said to have spread her blue cloak over a white-blossomed rosemary bush when she was resting, and the flowers turned blue. The shrub then became known as the 'Rose of Mary'

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