Why wear a poppy?Why wear a poppy?
All over the world the poppy is the symbol of remembrance of those who died in order that we may be free. Have you ever wondered why we wear a poppy?
For a very long time, poppies had been thought of as flowers of slumber and forgetfulness. Now they have become the emblem of remembrance.
Many hundreds of years ago, the ancient Greeks had a legend regarding poppies and sleep. In this legend they likened the heads of dying warriors to the drooping poppies of the field. They even made crowns of poppies to be placed on the heads of those who had died - a symbol of perfect sleep.
Flanders is the name of the whole western 
part of Belgium. It saw some of the worst fighting of the First World War. It was so bad that buildings, roads, trees and wildlife simply disappeared. Where once there were homes and farms there was now a sea of mud. Only one other living thing survived. Each year the poppy flowered when the warm weather arrived. It brought colour and reassurance to those still fighting.
Poppies only flower in soil that has been rooted up. Their seeds can lay dormant, in the ground, for years. They only germinate grow after the ground has been disturbed.
John McCrae was so moved by the sight of the poppies that he wrote the poem "In Flanders Fields" .
His poem was printed in 'Punch' magazine and the poppy became a the symbol for soldiers who died in battle.
The first actual Poppy Day was held in Britain on 
November 11th, 1921 and was a national success raising £106,000. We have celebrated poppy day every year since.
The picture alongside is a poppy from 1921. Can you see how much they have changed? Which type of poppy would you rather wear on remembrance day?