tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post6522646327110737520..comments2023-10-16T12:59:06.745+01:00Comments on Janice in Caunes: Remembering Uncle DonaldJanicehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05449652020751269674noreply@blogger.comBlogger18125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post-23980948453587332162015-01-24T18:20:02.810+00:002015-01-24T18:20:02.810+00:00A very poignant post, Janice. I haven't yet vi...A very poignant post, Janice. I haven't yet visited any of the WW1 cemeteries or memorials, but plan to do so with one of my sisters in February next year to mark the centenary of my Great-Uncle Walter's death on the Somme. He is one of those commemorated on the Menin Gate. But I had the same reaction as you and Mark when visiting some of the small WW2 cemeteries in Normandy some years ago. There is something so touchingly intimate and personal about them, which contrasts strongly with the overwhelming sadness and almost horror of the huge cemetaries with their thousands of graves.Perpetuahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01214396019726161983noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post-72105150664759381402015-01-22T13:35:18.565+00:002015-01-22T13:35:18.565+00:00Your posts always hook me in to the story you are ...Your posts always hook me in to the story you are telling with your brilliant photographic recordings.Hazel Maria Blakeleyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09720712737417796993noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post-31545874365954127902015-01-16T11:52:15.497+00:002015-01-16T11:52:15.497+00:00I remember reading about your visit last year...an...I remember reading about your visit last year...and thought about you and Bruce, when we were at Louverval. Janicehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05449652020751269674noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post-71838740730383880862015-01-16T11:51:14.735+00:002015-01-16T11:51:14.735+00:00It is amazing how family stories can vanish within...It is amazing how family stories can vanish within a couple of generations...maybe as we have learned that bottling things up isn't good for you, this wont happen in the future. I am horrified how many "family secrets" in my family have only emerged since I have started looking into our collective past.Janicehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05449652020751269674noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post-15384896412817676052015-01-16T11:49:22.505+00:002015-01-16T11:49:22.505+00:00I'm sure the CWGC, who do such a good job main...I'm sure the CWGC, who do such a good job maintaining these sites, have to clear photos, poppies, flowers, poems, little notes away every day...but it was important for us to leave something....Apparently all photos and written pieces are kept in an archive......I hope they can digitise it so that it can be kept forever.Janicehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05449652020751269674noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post-19969454024169968092015-01-16T11:46:44.473+00:002015-01-16T11:46:44.473+00:00yes, the emotion just creeps up....all so incredib...yes, the emotion just creeps up....all so incredibly sad.Janicehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05449652020751269674noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post-3964948161332493872015-01-16T11:46:03.770+00:002015-01-16T11:46:03.770+00:00We certainly felt that although we have meant to d...We certainly felt that although we have meant to do this before, many times....it was important to do it in 2014. Janicehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05449652020751269674noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post-17716067362826811712015-01-16T11:45:06.994+00:002015-01-16T11:45:06.994+00:00it is incredibly moving...but somehow very dignifi...it is incredibly moving...but somehow very dignified as well. Janicehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05449652020751269674noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post-50488093874147693332015-01-16T11:44:30.108+00:002015-01-16T11:44:30.108+00:00Me too... the sombre weather added to it as well.Me too... the sombre weather added to it as well.Janicehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05449652020751269674noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post-83862763147328734082015-01-16T11:44:03.595+00:002015-01-16T11:44:03.595+00:00Have you looked at Julian's web pages about Do...Have you looked at Julian's web pages about Donald ? he includes lots more information and some great photos... Have a great trip Hannah... xxxJanicehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05449652020751269674noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post-35321559562158499262015-01-16T07:14:58.983+00:002015-01-16T07:14:58.983+00:00A beautiful post, Janice. I will never forget our ...A beautiful post, Janice. I will never forget our visit to Villers Bretonneux last year and especially how quiet 6000 people could be, waiting for the dawn service to start. It really shook me up that so many young men died on both sides. Mariahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12594244181463706442noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post-27033420252212903852015-01-15T23:49:38.670+00:002015-01-15T23:49:38.670+00:00A poignant post - I'd like to find my great un...A poignant post - I'd like to find my great uncle's memorial too. Before I started doing family history I didn't know his story - just his name - and when I found him on the CWGC site I felt very emotional. Why on earth had nobody told me about my grandfather's dear brother?<br />I suppose some people cope by burying painful memories.nillyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09733433402466612700noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post-61927637500183080522015-01-15T22:41:42.889+00:002015-01-15T22:41:42.889+00:00Dear Janice - it was very special that you made th...Dear Janice - it was very special that you made the poignant journey to visit and remember Mark's great uncle Donald, and so lovely that you left behind his photo and shared your thoughts for others to read and reflect on him too.Rosemaryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03814070177137076757noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post-50659972630188699782015-01-15T15:37:46.693+00:002015-01-15T15:37:46.693+00:00I have been so moved by this, Janice. You truly ho...I have been so moved by this, Janice. You truly honor not only Jay's Uncle Donald, but all whose lives were lost during WWI, and, in turn, their loved ones in this posting. <br />I have found myself caught unawares at times, visiting memorials such as this one, of how emotional I can become. Well done, Janice, and I thank you. Penny O'Neillhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14665025558373015362noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post-4162805638975075112015-01-15T10:49:05.329+00:002015-01-15T10:49:05.329+00:00A very special post, and a special trip, Janice. ...A very special post, and a special trip, Janice. The memorial is very elegant, like a temple. I have blogged about a similar trip we did, re HB's two great-uncles, in Belgium. One is marked only on the Menin Gate memorial, the other has a grave in one of the war cemeteries. We were very impressed to find the Visitor books as we searched, with scant info from the internet. Thankfully we found them both, all in one day. The work of Fabian Ware is to be commended. So many families are doing this, particularly now in the centenary years. Beautiful post, Janice. xxPatriciahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11685403215601517267noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post-43110925789305464832015-01-14T15:16:56.547+00:002015-01-14T15:16:56.547+00:00A few years ago, my husband and I visited the gra...A few years ago, my husband and I visited the grave of his grandfather who was killed in 1916. It was a very moving experience and the cemetery, in Boulogne was very peaceful and sad. It brought home to me the reality of the person and how his death affected his family down through the generations. This is a lovely post, Janice...The Broadhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04976467218216864644noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post-83110823290628754632015-01-14T12:52:03.957+00:002015-01-14T12:52:03.957+00:00We made a similar trip a few years back. I surpris...We made a similar trip a few years back. I surprised myself by just how moved I felt at the sight of the memorials and graves. BacktoBodrumhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07627125508442009313noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-926851391080970240.post-65309819475911768362015-01-14T12:19:40.979+00:002015-01-14T12:19:40.979+00:00Thank you for posting this Janice. I feel a little...Thank you for posting this Janice. I feel a little ashamed that you know more about my family's history than I do! We had always known about "Uncle Donald who died in the war" but as a child it didn't really mean much to me. I hardly remember Gran (Dora) talking about her younger brother. I'm sure Julian would love to read this, and Christine - I'll send the link to her.I love the family photo of Donald on leave shortly before he died...... you'll have to remind me who the children are. Thanks again xHannahnoreply@blogger.com