Last weekend we went to my cousin's 40th in Derby. On the way back, we dropped in to the
National Memorial Arboretum.
What a place. It completely blew me away. It's still a very new arboretum, but in years to come when the trees mature it will really be something else, with the hundreds of armed service memorials nestled away in little glades amongst the wood.
The highlight for me was the
Armed Services Memorial Wall - a beautifully designed structure - inscribed with the name of every serviceman or servicewoman who has lost their life in service since the Second World War. It's an incredibly tactile thing - the names become more real to you because of the urge to run your fingers over them. The most touching part is a split in the wall, through which a shaft of sunlight falls every year on the eleventh hour of the eleventh month. It's a beautifully fitting memorial to those who've made the ultimate sacrifice for our protection.
Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of this wonderful place, as rather stupidly I forgot my camera. There is a
flickr group dedicated to the place though, and I would encourage you to visit and have a look at the pictures there.