In France the signs of the two World Wars are all around – monuments, battlefields, and cemeteries and bullet marks on buildings. So Armistice Day is very important for everyone there. Not only do they mark it with a national holiday, but every village, town and city has its own parade and ceremony. In many ways, it’s much the same as Syston’s commemoration ceremony. For Syston Twinning it is one of the official times in the year when we join with our friends of Deville les Rouen Twinning to remember what can happen when nations lose links with their neighbours. This year it was Syston Twinning’s turn to visit Deville, and a small group from the Committee took the Shuttle across to France on Thursday 10th November, so that we were there in plenty of time for the Remembrance Ceremony. Despite these precautions, Ian and Ann Baker’s hostess had a diabetic incident which prevented them from attending the ceremony. They were able to lay the wreath the following day, however, thanks to the kindness of Daniel Ligny, President of Deville’s Twinning group. The time together with our French friends was very useful in sharing views on cultural and financial similarities and differences, not at a diplomatic or political level, but as ordinary citizens of our towns.
The following week-end the Twinning Committee were involved in a much more light-hearted fund-raising event – a Murder Mystery set in the Wild West. Over sixty members and friends enjoyed a lively evening trying to solve the dreadful murder. One reason for the success of the evening was the trouble taken by everyone with the costumes. They showed great imagination. The prize for the best costume for a child went to Connor aged four, who had a delightful evening shooting everyone with his guns. Surprisingly, no one was able to identify the murderer at the end of the night, though that didn’t stop anyone from enjoying the food and games, and there were prizes for each group anyway.
