Forget-me-nots are the tiny blue meadow flowers that are incredibly symbolic. From the loss of loved ones to simply missing a childhood friend, the flowers have become synonymous with feelings of missing and longing. In New Zealand, Forget Me Not Day is dedicated to those afflicted with, or who have lost loved ones due to cognitive degenerative Alzheimer’s disease. And while there are some versions of Forget Me Not Day that celebrate this sort of loss or reconnecting with long-lost loved ones, this Forget Me Not Day, we focus on something different, but also important.
Forget Me Not Day as we know it was established following World War I, when Judge Robert S. Marx, himself a WWI veteran, declared the holiday in honor of veterans who had suffered physical losses in the line of battle — those who had lost limbs, blood, and other integral body parts. Along with the holiday, Marx inaugurated the tradition of selling the popular forget-me-not flowers, repurposing them to raise money for wounded veterans.
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