We must always honour our dead. But today let's also remember war heroes who can never forget

We must always honour our dead. But today let's also remember war heroes who can never forget: Rock legend Bryan Adams, who took this powerful image, argues it has a vital message for us all
Remembrance Day resonates with the performer because his father and grandfather were both members of the British Army
But he points out that it can be more uncomfortable to remember the living wounded than those who have died in war
So he has photographed injured soldiers in painfully honest poses for a new book, which is published tomorrow

By BRYAN ADAMS

PUBLISHED: 23:16 GMT, 9 November 2013 | UPDATED: 02:43 GMT, 11 November 2013

Tomorrow morning, at the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month we will, once again, bow our heads throughout the traditional two-minute silence in remembrance of The Fallen.
We will honour not just those who died in the First and Second World Wars, but those who lost their lives in many battles over the decades since, including those in the arid deserts of Iraq and in the mountainous terrain of Afghanistan.
It is right and just that we should do so, and to remember, too, the countless civilians caught up in wars that were not of their making.
Wounded: Marine Joe Townsend lost both his legs in Afghanistan. He was just 19 when he stepped on an improvised explosive device
Wounded: Marine Joe Townsend lost both his legs in Afghanistan. He was just 19 when he stepped on an improvised explosive device
Sacrifice: Sergeant Rick Clement lost both his legs after stepping on an IED while on patrol in Afghanistan
Sacrifice: Sergeant Rick Clement lost both his legs after stepping on an IED while on patrol in Afghanistan
Marine Mark Ormrod lost both legs and his right arm after stepping on an IED during a foot patrol in Afghanistan on Christmas Eve
Lieutenant Will Dixon, 29, he lost his leg when his vehicle was hit by an IED while on patrol in Afghanistan
Cost: Marine Mark Ormrod, left, lost both legs and his right arm after stepping on an IED during a foot patrol in Afghanistan on Christmas Eve. Lieutenant Will Dixon, right, 29, he lost his leg when his vehicle was hit by an IED
Sergeant Mark Sutcliffe lost his leg when he was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade during an attack in Iraq
Corporal Simon Brown lost almost his entire eyesight after being hit by a bullet after being called to a broken-down vehicle which was being fired on by insurgents in Iraq
Selfless: Sergeant Mark Sutcliffe, left, lost his leg when he was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade during an attack in Iraq. Corporal Simon Brown, right, lost almost his entire eyesight after being hit by a bullet after being called to a broken-down vehicle which was being fired on by insurgents in Iraq
Perhaps, like me, you have questioned these recent conflicts and debated the merits of our involvement in the on-going ‘war on terror’.
But whatever our conflicting emotions on the morality of these recent wars we have waged, we acknowledge the debt owed to those who died on the battlefields. Those who sacrificed their lives.
Those who selflessly put duty before desire, and honour above home. Those who did what was asked of them.

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Although I was born in Canada, my father and grandfathers were in the British Army. Both my grandfathers enlisted in the Royal Engineers. That is why Remembrance Day resonates so strongly with me.
In 1987 Jim Vallance and I wrote a song called Remembrance Day as a personal tribute to all those who died fighting for freedom.
By honouring and commemorating our dead, we pay homage to those who paid the ultimate price.
But tomorrow morning, I urge you to think about another band of brothers who have made a similar sacrifice.
Celebrating veterans: Bryan Adams's book, Wounded: The Legacy of War, will be published tomorrow
Celebrating veterans: Bryan Adams's book, Wounded: The Legacy of War, will be published tomorrow
They are the soldiers and civilians who suffered life-changing injuries - whether it be the loss of limbs, disfiguring scars or emotional anguish.
Those for whom, when the fight on the battlefield ended, the euphoria of survival was swiftly followed by the onset of yet another daunting struggle: that of readjusting and adapting to a world in which many of them feel they can no longer participate fully.
The insightful works of many of our great poets such as Wilfred Owen and Siegfried Sassoon (both of whom served in the First World War), and the paintings of Frederick Varley, depicted vividly the bloody brutality faced by those who, as Owen graphically described, ‘die like cattle’.
Owen’s verses in particular describe candidly the cruel reality of the ‘monstrous anger of the guns’ and the ‘stuttering rifles rapid rattle’. His poems are vivid with flesh-and-blood detail, and peppered with explosive fragments that chronicle war’s carnage.
And in writing his verse, he allowed us to acknowledge that patriotism can recognise the horror of trench and gas warfare, as well as pay tribute to the glory of battle. That to concede that war is hell does not diminish our servicemen’s courage on the battlefield.
Kipling’s poem A Soldier Of The Queen captures graphically the terrible realities faced by those on the plains of Afghanistan 170 years ago.
‘When you’re wounded and left on Afghanistan’s plains, And the women come out to cut up what remains, Just roll to your rifle and blow out your brains, An’ go to your Gawd like a soldier.’
But while we willingly laud our fallen and rightly recoil at the carnage they endured, we all too often shy away from the fate of the wounded.
The legacy of war, of the pain and injury we inflict upon each other, is not solely represented by those Union Flag-draped coffins solemnly shouldered from the bowels of the military aircraft; it is epitomised even more graphically by those who survived, albeit with terrible injuries.
While we mourn the dead, we do not have to witness the wounds inflicted upon them or their broken bodies. Instead, we are left with their medals, the insignia of heroism and glory.
Experience: Siegfried Sassoon eloquently described the First World War, in which he served
Experience: Siegfried Sassoon eloquently described the First World War, in which he served
In contrast, the scars the wounded bear in our name are paraded before us daily. For many, it is a far too uncomfortable reminder of the true nature of war.
Tomorrow, to coincide with Remembrance Day, my book, Wounded: The Legacy Of War, will be published. It is a compilation of stories that celebrate injured British veterans from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Their stories, in their own words, were recorded by my co-author, ITN journalist Caroline Froggatt, while I photographed them.
For the majority, this was the first time they had revealed their amputations, their scars and their disabilities to anyone other than their immediate family and friends.
Some were willing to reveal their wounds in full; others, understandably, were more hesitant. To witness how they and their families have coped was humbling.
Their accounts are searingly honest and at times unsettling. They are raw and visceral. And, at times, what is left unsaid speaks volumes.
They recount feats of astonishing valour and determination on the battlefield in a matter-of-fact manner.
But what are perhaps most poignant are their descriptions of how they have deployed that same tenacity and courage in coming to terms with learning new tasks.
Insight: The poetry of Wilfred Owen, pictured, depicted vividly the horrors of war
Insight: The poetry of Wilfred Owen, pictured, depicted vividly the horrors of war
These are tasks that most of us take for granted, such as making a cup of tea, getting out of bed, opening a bottle of milk or playing with our children.
While their testimonies are both uplifting and thought-provoking, I believe photographs convey what words alone cannot.
That was why I was so determined to display in this book the scorching human side of recent wars; to remind us that we must not forget what has happened to these men and women.
For if we do, we learn nothing. And while we have the luxury of studying the photographs, wondering how on earth they have endured, for many they will be deeply disturbing.
For these soldiers’ families, the pictures are a reminder of their darkest days - a reminder too of how their lives have been altered by their loved ones’ injuries.
These proud portraits are proof of how profoundly changed their lives are, and how they have discovered an inner mettle that perhaps they did not realise they possessed.
While photographing these wounded men and women I came across a huge variety of injuries. Some victims couldn’t speak properly; many had limbs blown off; others were badly burned or blinded and disfigured.
Bryan Adams in concery
Bryan Adams at a ceremony
Family history: Although rock legend Bryan Adams, seen right in concert, is Canadian, both his father and grandfather were in the British Army
Each story was different. But what all these soldiers share is the spirit of camaraderie, and an unflinching faith that no matter how horrifically wounded they were, no matter how hazardous their situation, they would not be left behind on the battlefield.
That camaraderie is a quite remarkable bond. Some of it is borne of the discipline instilled during their training. Some, perhaps, the result of their shared experiences and stoicism.
Much of it, however, is testimony to their dedication.
Time and time again they talk of ‘not wanting to let my mates down’; of how they worried for the safety of their comrades, even as they themselves lay wounded. This is the stuff of selfless courage.
Yet how do we revere these wounded warriors? Some of us support charities such as Help For Heroes and Walking With The Wounded, which have done incredible things to help.
But it is also vital to continue to raise awareness because, while these wars are waged on foreign battlefields, the injured veterans are all someone’s brother, father, sister, mother. They live among us in our communities.
Wear it with pride: Adams encourages us to revere the fallen, but also to revere those who have survived
Wear it with pride: Adams encourages us to revere the fallen, but also to revere those who have survived
I’ve chosen to support five smaller charities with my book: BLESMA supports Servicemen and women who have lost limbs or their eyesight during combat; Blind Veterans UK provides training and rehabilitation for the visually impaired; Combat Stress counsels psychologically wounded soldiers; SSAFA offers accommodation and advice in times of need and upheaval; and War Child is a small international charity that protects children from the brutal effects of war and its consequences.
So, today, wear your poppy with pride. Embrace and honour The Fallen who died so bravely, and those unsung heroes who soldiered quietly and professionally, but whose deeds have gone unheralded.
But revere, too, the injured who survived - those seeming ‘lucky ones’ whose anguished minds and mutilated bodies mean they can never forget either the horrors of battle or the struggle beyond to adapt and overcome.
Once the dust settles on the plains of Afghanistan and in the deserts of Iraq, and the spin and propaganda of governments and politicians have become a distant echo, all that is left are the wounded. They are, truly, our legacy of war.


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2496053/We-honour-dead-But-today-lets-remember-war-heroes-forget-Rock-legend-Bryan-Adams-took-powerful-image-argues-vital-message-all.html#ixzz2kJjfxsSH
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