The sound of artillery fire haunts him to this day. The choking smoke of diesel fuel and the cries of fallen brothers broke him in ways only those who lived it could understand.
Cold steel was everywhere you touched, making you long for home and the softness of anything at all.
Like a lilypad floating on an endless sea, you forget what land felt like as you steam where you're needed, knowing it won't be good.
There is silence among your brothers trying to eat, but food isn't on your mind, and sleep only comes in spurts as the distant sound of the big guns sends ripples through the ship.
Weeks turn into months and months into more months with no word from home, leaving you with only memories to hold onto, along with a tattered photograph of the one you left behind.
Somewhere beyond your sight, a battle rages on, and men are dying, yelling for their mothers who watched them sail off so young and so scared.
It's your turn now as shells fly past you and a brother falls. Another strike and a gaping hole puncture the ship, and another brother cries in pain but can't be heard as more shells find their mark in the darkness of night.
Daylight brings support ships that shield us from further destruction and sinking to the ocean floor.
As we limp into port, an eerie silence fills the air as wounded are tended to, and shock is buried in your brain for as long as you live.
Like all battles, many are lost but never forgotten. The heroes of war don't feel like heroes; they are just thousands of warriors, some who made it home and some who didn't.
On this Veterans Day, stop for a minute and thank those who gave it all so we as a nation could live free and for those who will take their place on distant oceans, young and scared but ready to answer the call.
11-11-2024
Mike
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