This year, the D-day anniversary seems more poignant than ever as we face more global atrocities. I’ve been delving into some of the archives and reading about some of the young men who bravely set out on that June day eighty years ago to do their best for their country. The events of 6th June 1944, have achieved near – mythical status, but it’s so important to remember D -Day was a momentous battle fought by very real people. One can only imagine the fear and sadness that lived in the hearts of parents who waved goodbye to their sons, not knowing if they would see them again. And what of the men themselves? What must they have felt as they arrived at the coast to see the heaving sea heavy with vessels and the skies overhead full of aircraft? Who could ever tell us what went through the minds of young men who should have been at home fretting about nothing more than their studies or getting to work on time. The battle is extremely well documented and I’m not here to recount the actual events…I’m just here to draw attention to the boy next door with the smiling face who bravely stepped out that day, and all the other ones like him who didn’t make it home. I hope new generations go forth with peace in their hearts because of them.
D-Day
Did you wake that early summer’s day,
And think of home
Where everything was where it had always been
And your mother waited -
Uttering prayers until she
Folded like a pack of cards.
I saw someone like you smiling,
As they bravely looked ahead,
Somehow finding courage
As they left their future
On a windswept beach.
And when the little ships
Stormed the shores of Normandy
Did the screaming skies
Watch you hold your falling comrades
And know the cost of liberty?
Did someone speak your name
And reach for your hand
As you fell asleep
In a foreign land?
Oh, the beaches may be empty now,
But the tide endlessly turns,
To whisper the names
Of long-lost souls.
Lmh
Notes From Dove Lane 