Thus spoke Zoroaster

Lovely walk this morning. We went to the North side of Brookwood Cemetery where the military graves are, as well as a plot for the Zoroastrans. They were big in the old days in what we now call Iran but got displaced by Islam around the 6th Century and are now an endangered species, which is a shame as religions that start with a z are pretty cool.

We found quite a few Jewish graves amongst the service men and women, and left stones on each one, as you do. We also found a memorial to a man who was killed in the First World War in the Print and Stationary Corps, which I had never heard of before. There he was surrounded by gunners, infantrymen, bombardiers, you name it ... I had a rather sad image of him rushing into battle with his typewriter and being killed before he could make it to safety. 

The RAF section is moving and has a beautiful memorial building. I've always loved the RAF motto - Per Ardua Ad Astra (the way to the stars) - there is a much bigger and more impressive one up at Runnymede, near the river. Must go back when lockdown is over, haven't been there for years.

We also had a good hour tidying up the garden on what was a very mild day. I often think of how people died in battle, particularly in World War Two, and how my precious freedoms (such as gardening on a warm February day) might not have existed but for them. I'm sure most of them weren't grand or particularly ideological, which makes it even more remarkable. They just got on with it.

In Zoroastrianism, Asha (truth, cosmic order), stands in opposition to Druj (falsehood, deceit). I'm not simplistic but sometimes life seems like a battle between good and evil, and some of the people buried in Brookwood were definitely in the fight ...

Postscript:

Really nice evening. The Dizzle and Mystic Em had a candlelit dinner to celebrate three years together. We joined them afterwards and things got pleasantly merry. Then a very competitive game of Boggle. Good day.