Why I wear my poppy with pride every day of the year

But that does not stop me from having the utmost respect for those who have ever served in any of our armed forces.

It is a time to remember those, either conscripted or regular member of the British Army, The Royal Navy or the Royal Air Force, who have given their lives in any conflict in living memory.

And that is why I wear my poppy with pride.

I do not wear it just at this time of the year, but it is permanently pinned in to one of my coats.

People may think I have simply forgotten to take it out.

But that is not the case.

It is there as my own permanent reminder of family members I never met because their lives were lost in the Second World War.

It is also there in memory of the friends and relatives of my own friends and relatives who were cruelly taken in either world war or any of the conflicts since then.

And it is also there as a permanent reminder of the brave men and women whose names we have had to record in these columns in recent times.

This is not a time of year for politics, no matter what colour of rosette you would naturally wear.

Nor, in my mind, is it a time of celebration.

It is a time of year when the overwhelming feeling is one of loss and grief.

And it is also a time of year when respect is the only thing that really matters.

There have been many services of Remembrance throughout Pendle over recent days.

Not just in churches an chapels.

But also more public acts at war memorials around the borough.

Over the years I have attended many of the public Remembrance Services.

And I don’t think I have ever spoken to anyone while I have been there.

I offer my silent thoughts and prayers for people I have never met.

And at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month I never fail to stop whatever I am doing and spend two minutes in quiet reflection.