While there, we met up with an old school chum of mine who organises a Knitting Group. Following on from the contribution that Sonia Bidwell the Textile Artist/Storyteller from Scotland made to the Exhibition at the Ace Centre, I asked if any of the members of the Knitting Group would like to make something to commemorate the First World War. So far there are a crocheted tea cosy, a knitted Balaclava and several beautiful poppies and a Land Army girl is in the pipeline, with fingerless gloves... So there is plenty of time to get on board and come up with your own ideas for commemorating.
My friend showed me a copy of a fantastic book written by Wirral author Dave Horne and entitled "Higher Bebington's Heroes 1914 - 1919". This 122-page work of dedication by the author lists the names of the 29 men whose names are recorded on a Memorial Tablet in Christ Church in Higher Bebington, Wirral. There is an introduction which explains Dave's family link to the First World War and there is a map of the area in 1910. Dave also has biographical details of the men, photographs of them and in many cases their houses and photographs of their graves.
I just had to purchase a copy of the book, so I took note of Dave's details and ordered one. It was waiting for us when we got home and I have hardly put it down since. When you think about it, this is just one small church in a village - one tiny corner of the world. Imagine how many other, similar Memorial Tablets there must be throughout the rest of our world! I would like to think that eventually every single person who died in the Great War could be recorded in a similar manner. And then there are all those who helped in many different ways and whose lives were changed for ever... I don't want much do I?
"Higher Bebington's Heroes 1914 - 1919" by Dave Horne, published in 2012 by Countryvise Ltd., Birkenhead, Wirral.
ISBN No. 978 1 906823 77 1
Book and cover design by Charles McIntyre
** Quotation from Rudyard Kipling's poem "Recessional", 1897.
