While I visited Edinburgh, I wanted to see museums, honor literary figures, goggle at architecture, and take whiskey and ghost tours (all of which I did), but I had no real inclination to visit Edinburgh Castle. My travel partner, however, wanted to see the castle so badly that he even paid for half my fare. I think I'll be eternally grateful that he dragged me along.
You see, the castle is grand on many standpoints, but its interactive and moving displays of military history go above and beyond most of the military museums I have seen. (And I've seen a lot of military museums, being the daughter of a Naval Academy grad who ended up teaching in the Air Force as a Lieutenant-Colonel for more than 30 years.)
Seriously, this display was sweet! You walked through the progression of military weapons, uniforms, and theaters. Not so unusual. Unusual: It had a helmet, the sort a knight would wear, that you could try on.
See?And it had the Scottish National War Memorial, a large blue-gray stone building with stained glass windows and more contemplative silence than most living people can handle. It opened in 1927 and serves to honor all the Scots who died from WWI to present day. Their names are listed in books and binders in the memorial.
One quote in particular captured my attention. Luckily, I wrote it down... and stumbled across it on Veterans Day two years later:
“Ye who pass this way hold in memory those who ministering to the souls of their fellow men gave their lives…”
Thanks to all who have stood up for their countries, sacrificing their time and passion and lives. You are remembered. You are needed. You are loved. Your spirit lives on in the country you served and all around the world.
Blessed be.
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