Do You Know How to Properly Wear a Poppy for Veterans/Remembrance Day?

The leaf should be at 11 o'clock

I did a little research about wearing poppies...

When is it appropriate to start wearing a poppy?

The campaign starts this year on Oct. 27 – it starts two weekends prior to Remembrance Day.  So Oct. 27 through to November 11 in regards to Remembrance Day.

Where should one wear the poppy?

The proper place to wear a poppy is the left-hand-side of one’s shirt, over the heart or on the lapel of one’s jacket, on the left-hand-side side. Everyone is encouraged to wear a poppy.

Some say you should wear it on the left side of your chest if you are a civil servant, or right side if you are either a serving or past member of the armed forces. Some people believe that women traditionally also pin their poppies on the right side of their chest; however, it can be frowned upon to do this.

If you wish to be very correct: Position the leaf at 11 o'clock to represent the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month, the time that World War One formally ended.

The poppy colors

The red represents the blood of all those who gave their lives; the black represents the mourning of those who didn't have their loved ones return home; and the green leaf represents the grass and crops growing, and future prosperity after the war destroyed so much.

When I was young, I remember my dad, a World War II veteran, would buy poppies from the local VFW and hand them out to the whole family to wear.

Does anyone know if poppies are for sale in the Upper Valley somewhere?

Nancy Nutile-McMenemy is an Upper Valley freelance photographer and writer who loves to attend concerts and local events in and around Weathersfield and the Upper Valley.  If you have an event you'd like listed please email it to: photosbynanci@comcast.com