Memories of the Sea
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Ah the lovely seasdie
Ah the lovely seaside
Childhood scents
Salt air, Salty bitter memories
Jacques had turned just seven
He dreamed to walk along the seashore
He dreamed to see the seagulls sore overhead
He most of all dreamed to leave his basement
All the windows were covered with curtains
The days, nights no matter
His life was the darkness
His momma and papa, gave away their smiles
There were many days, the lightening was eternal
Well into the night
His mother held him tight
They both absorbed the fear of the other
Many mornings, Momma, can I walk to the beach?
No Jacques my little one, you must stay here
Help is needed in the kitchen
He wondered what help. We have no food to cook?
Many a day when no one was watching him
He would peek out the window, longing
The beach was simply down the street and to the left
Oh how he dreamed to run and play and splash in the waves
Summer was warming up his heart
He knew his momma and papa loved him
He knew these were bad times
Even so, he decided, tomorrow, yes tomorrow
So on the night of June the 5th
He planned well, hiding his boots out back
Made a small backpack for snacks and his jacket
He fell into a deep sleep, so very pleased
Up early he snuck out of the house
Past the bakers and in between soldiers patrolling
Quite easily he found the path down to the beach
Little did poor Jacques know he was to become a part of history
He ran from a little inlet out onto the beach
Jumping and dancing and gleefully singing to the seagulls
As he observed boats of all shapes and sizes and sailing to shore
His spine tingled, with a foreboding
The seaside
Became hell
Darkness clouded Jacques world
Bombs and gunfire rained down from all sides
Jacques tried to run, but his feet became heavy
He stumbles and fell to the sand
Thousands of solders emerged from the sea
Racing towards him, some running, some falling
A young Canadian man, Victor was his name
Firing his rifle, and racing for the shore saw the young boy
He had a new born baby back home, named him jack
Well he ran and fell atop the young boy, yelling above the fray
Stay quiet young man, don’t move
I will protect you, fear not
Even fear was the meal of the day
As the seaside became Dante’s eternal hell
The Germans above, fired all they had towards the beach
Machine gunners fired, mortars rained and snipers took aim
A young German man with a rifle was shooting anyone
Whom by miracle was still moving
His sites were set on that particular Canadian soldier
He took aim then saw a boy underneath the soldier
Well at the end of the battle, that young German soldier
Had one bullet left in his rifle
He could not fire
In the heat of battle
He pulled out a photo of his young boy Erik
He kissed the photo, and wept
It was the Germans last thought
As a bullet ripped of his head
The Canadian soldier was staring at this exact moment
Pain ripped his heart, as if he too was dead
Miraculously Jacques survived that day
When he made his way back home
His momma and papa hugged him so tight
They almost strangled him
For the rest his life
Jacques never went by the seaside, not once
For him he tasted the bitter smell of cordite death
He lived his life in the vineyards, far from the sea
One may wonder now
How do I know all of this?
Well I work at an old folk’s home as an orderly
I take care of poor old Jacques
I remind him daily
No Jacques we will not be going to the seaside
Somehow, I feel obligated to this old man
As did my grandfather those many years ago
Who saved the life of a little boy named Jacques
June 6, 1944
Sidenote
Erik and Jacques both developed a passion for wines and vineyards and became the best of friends
Copyright © Arthur Vaso | Year Posted 2015
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