This story begins in 2012 when I saw this video about the now famous words "Keep Calm and Carry On". For the people who don't know and don't want to watch the video, this slogan dates back to WWII. It was produced as one of three propaganda posters by the British government as tool to strengthen the morale of the British people in case of a serious wartime disaster.
Although in 1939 there were almost 2.5 million copies printed of this poster, it never got to see the public eye. The British ministry of information wanted to keep the posters in cold storage for use after possible incoming air raids by the Germans. So in the meantime they focused their attention on publicizing the other two posters in their series, which read: "Your Courage, Your Cheerfulness, Your Resolution Will Bring Us Victory" and "Freedom Is in Peril. Defend It With All Your Might." In October of 1939, the poster campaign got cancelled because it was deemed too costly and not impactful enough. The red posters would stay in storage, and would mostly get destroyed in April of 1940.
50 years later the poster turned up in a bookshop called Barter books. In 2000, the owner of the book store found a copy of the poster in an old box he bought at auction. His wife liked it so much she framed the poster and put it up in the shop. That's when a lot of costumers saw the posters and wanted a copy of it, and it's popularity went from there. 60 years later than intented, the slogan "Keep Calm and Carry On" would reach it's massive audience and empower more people than it could've ever dreamed of.
It's hard to say why this image became so popular. It could be the basic yet beautiful design, the story behind the words, or it could be the words themselves. Five words, yet so powerful. It's not as inciting or encouraging as the other two, but the message is honest and simple: relax, take a deep breath and keep going. Every time I have a hard time and I look at these five words, I get reminded that nothing is insurmountable. Sometimes all you have to do is... Keep Calm, and Carry On.
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