German soldier Erich Maria Remarque, who went on to write the world famous 'All Quiet on the Western Front' is the subject of today's letter extract.

He writes:

“In an hour’s time, everything will have disappeared and disappeared to the point that one might believe it never existed.”

How do you interpret this sentence? To me it says in spite of the horrific death toll, the lost landscapes, past present and futures changed forever, life has a funny way of moving on and forgetting.

Erich was warning us about memory, about how quickly places, moments, and lives can fade once the guns fall silent.

That is why remembrance matters. Not as ritual alone, but as responsibility. When we forget, we do a disservice to those who lived through war and to those who never came home.

At Sophie’s Great War Tours, this is our purpose. To walk the ground where history unfolded. To tell the stories behind the names. To make sure that the lives that once existed are not allowed to disappear into silence. Remembrance isn’t about looking back. It’s about ensuring that these stories continue to matter, now and for those who come after us too.