Omaha Trench

I am posting this on June 6, 2020, in honor of the brave men from the United States, Canada, Britain and many other countries who risked their lives 76 years ago, today, storming the beaches of Normandy to free the world from the grip of fascism and authoritarianism. Many of those men drew their last breath that day, a day we know as D-Day. Please remember what our fathers, grandfathers, and great-grandfathers did that day, the sacrifices they made for us, and the especially, the young men who never had the chance to have children and grandchildren.

This is a story I wrote a few years ago around this same time, when I was reflecting on those brave men and trying to picture what it may have been like for them.

Omaha Trench is a fictitious first hand account of an American soldier in the first wave to hit Omaha beach in Normandy on D-Day, June 6, 1944. This story puts you right in the middle of the action, a witness to the both the horror of battle and the small, individual acts of heroism that no one will ever know about.

As an aside, and it grieves me to have to say this, but this story contains harsh language and derogatory references that were quite common in the language of the day, and it is meant to be read in that perspective. If you are easily offended or are someone who would apply the modern pseudo-moral outrage to the events, language, and context of our history, then please do not read or comment on this story.

Cover Image is from History.com. The video clip is taken from the movie "The Longest Day", courtesy of Fandango MovieClips. If you haven't seen it, I would recommend it highly.