As the coach winds its way along the road of the Canadian Memorial Park at Vimy, Northern France, you might think you could start counting the trees, one for every Canadian lost here in WW1. But of course you can’t. The shell holes still mark the ground and the lines of the trenches are still visible between the trees.
Today the Canadian Memorial of white limestone is shrouded in mist, as it rises from the ridge into the autumn air, its whiteness still and stark against the misty sky. The features of the statues on the memorial make grief in stone. Here and there eternal stone carve leaves mingle with the squashed maple leaves of this year’s fall making the memories of a century ago and the current pilgrimages blend together. The figures of Truth, Faith and Justice look down on us.

We are here
to remember,
to discover,
to learn,
to become peacemakers
and builders of justice,
to serve God and each other.
And we are ready to serve God today.

(I am currently on a visit to the Battlefields of the Western Front with 40 others from Silcoates school)