Previous Challenge Entry (Level 4 – Masters)
Topic: FAMILY VACATION (07/30/15)
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TITLE: Papa's Legacy | Previous Challenge Entry
By
08/05/15 -
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“Bet I’m faster than you, David!”
Michael watched his two sons racing towards the calm waters, remembering his one and only family holiday as a child. That was twenty-nine years ago, just after his eighth birthday, but he remembered it like yesterday. It was the May Bank Holiday of 1944, and Margate beach was packed. A day of donkey rides and paddling in sea– it was paradise! Best of all, Papa was on leave from the army.
How could I have known that day would be the last I would spend with my beloved Papa?
He willed himself back to the present. This first attempt at a family holiday abroad, driving around the unspoilt countryside of Normandy had been going so well. He had been looking forward to visiting Bayeux today. That was, until Mama spotted a sign pointing to Le Hamel-Asnelles and begged to go there, instead. Seeing the name of the place was enough to send shivers down his spine and unleash a wave of nausea. Nonetheless, for his mother’s sake, he put on a brave face and took the turning.
Sudden squabbling heralded the return of Paul and David. It removed any further opportunities for thinking.
“It’s not fair, Dad! David only won because he’s bigger than me!”
“He’s older than you. One day, you’ll be as big and fast as him.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
Paul flashed his trademark grin, the one that was so reminiscent of his grandfather’s.
“Looks like lunch is ready, boys. Let’s go!”
Michael followed their trail of footprints to the picnic site, where his wife and his mother had unfurled deckchairs and set out lunch. Food was the last thing on his mind. He flopped into his deckchair and brushed the irritating sand off the hems of his mustard yellow flares.
Today, this beach was the perfect image of peace and serenity. With the sun reflecting off the sand, it lived up to its codename ‘Gold’. Yet, even though the barbed wire and gunfire were long gone, all Michael could see was the place where his childhood was ended.
Michael’s mother moved her deckchair beside his. “Darling, you look so angry. What’s troubling you?”
“Why did we have to come here, Mama?”
“I needed to see it for myself. And I’d like the boys to see it too, to give them some connection with their grandfather.”
“I’d love whoever laid that damn land mine to meet them too, and tell them why they’ll never know their grandfather. And explain to me why I never saw Papa again—”
“Oh, Michael, war is a terrible thing. How many German children wanted to ask our soldiers the same question?”
They sat in silence, gazing out to sea, until the silence was broken by two seagulls, fighting over a discarded morsel.
“You know your Papa forgave them before he died?”
Michael grunted.
“First thing he said to me at the military hospital was, ‘Don’t hate the Germans, Elsie. They’re just ordinary, frightened lads, like me.’” She took a deep breath. Michael reached out and took his mother’s trembling hand.
“I couldn’t let you see your Papa like that – I barely recognised him, the burns were so bad. But he knew his soul didn’t have to become a casualty. And nor does mine or yours.”
Michael wiped away a tear. “Sometimes I wish he’d died instantly, it would've spared him three weeks of agony and us three weeks of false hope.”
“Well, things happened as they did, and it’s no good wishing they were different. Think of the good times.”
“Like that day at Margate! You couldn't wipe the smile off his face. Paul’s only six, but that big grin of his reminds me so much of Papa’s, that day.”
“I've thought that, too. I think he would’ve been as wonderful a grandfather as he was a father and husband. Just before the sepsis took him, he told me that day at Margate was the best day of his life. Why don't you go and make this the best day of yours?”
On the beach, Paul and David had begun another game of ‘chase’. Michael smiled to himself. How pleased Papa would be to see the boys making full use of the freedom he and his comrades paid such a price to secure. And I’m pretty sure I know what he’d do right now…
Scooping up Paul mid-sprint, Michael darted after David towards the sparkling sea.
Author’s note:
The D-Day landings of June 6th 1944 marked the beginning of Operation Overlord, the Allied advance that eventually led to the liberation of France and other countries in Europe. British, Canadian and American forces, plus others from many nations, were involved.
www.travelfranceonline.com
www.ddaymuseum.co.uk
https://en.m.wikipedia.org.uk/wiki/Normandy_landings
This particular account is fiction.
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