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D-Day plus eighty years and a day
Friday, June 7, 2024 at 10:44AM 
June 6, 1944 :: A day of gratitude and rejoicing
As a gift for her college graduation in 2005, Audrey was treated by my mother to a trip to France.
The two of them went together and, once they were settled into their hotel, joined a week-long guided tour of Paris and surrounding areas.
Of all the places she was privileged to visit on that trip, the one that meant the most to Audrey was Normandy.
When she got back home, TG and I sat with her at the kitchen table as she wept when telling us about the thousands of white crosses at the Normandy American Cemetery.
Audrey told us of her acute disappointment on the day of her visit to Normandy with her grandmother.
My mom was upset because there was no quiet; a great deal of maintenance was being done at the memorials and the cemetery alike, and the noise bothered her.
(Someday I'll tell you about the time TG took me to a cemetery in upstate New York that I had wanted to visit for many years. A dream came true on that day but circumstances nearly ruined it for me until I figured out how to deal with it.)
Exacerbating the cacophony at Normandy on the day my mom and Audrey were there in June of 2005 was the fact that the tour had been running behind since the morning, and what was supposed to be a much lengthier stay at the beaches turned into a scant hour.
I cherish this souvenir given to me by my daughter
Not nearly long enough. Audrey says that if you go to Normandy, plan to stay for at least one whole day.
At any rate, the sacrifices made by Allied troops at Normandy on D-Day boggle the mind, even now.
My daughter presented me with the resin statue which I cherish, depicting an American soldier being given flowers by a Parisian child on June 6, 1944, the day of France's liberation after four years of occupation by German forces.
Years ago TG and I watched the movie Saving Private Ryan on TV. The opening sequence of that film left me speechless and in tears. I almost wish I'd never seen it, but at the same time I am glad I did.
The Higgins boats crammed with young men -- and boys -- approaching the shores of the beaches where the heavily fortified Germans were shooting from positions in the hills, while fire also rained on their heads from the sky, is a scene that anyone who values their freedoms should contemplate on purpose, from time to time.
Later I said to TG -- who, if one becomes a student of a subject by reading dozens of books about it over a period of decades, is a student of World War II -- that if the reality of June 6, 1944 was even half of what was acted out in the film, it's difficult to comprehend how desperate a situation it was.
He said, It was exactly like that. And probably worse.
It happened eighty years ago, yesterday.
Soon all those who survived that engagement with the enemy in that place on that day, will be gone. There are a few thousand left across the world, the youngest of whom are in their late nineties.
Never again have so few done so much for so many
In my opinion, the day that the last veteran of that conflict passes away, will be a tragic day for the world. We will never see the likes of them again.
We owe all of our gratitude for every joy we have known in this life, to God and also to them.
And that is all for now.
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Happy Friday :: Happy Weekend
Reader Comments (15)
Like so many, I had family that fought in WWII (my Dad missed it by a year, but then served proudly in the Korean War) - my mother's father volunteered at age 32! He was with a tank division that saw alot of action. My former father-in-law was Jewish, and served as a tail gunner who prayed they would never crash land, as he feared the Axis more than a crash! Anyways, we owe enormous gratitude to ALL that served, and all that gave the ultimate sacrifice and I am forever grateful for them all.
Dawn P. Albany, GA USA
I'm forever thankful for the sacrifices people have made to protect our country and others. It is impossible to truly know the horrific things they saw and had to do. That generation truly was the greatest.
I loved reading about this, because your post is a different and unique perspective about this horrible event.
@Dawn ... welcome and thank you for telling of your relatives who were true American heroes. God bless them and their memory! What an amazing generation they belonged to. xoxo
@Lori ... yes indeed. Their contribution to the world and to us cannot be overestimated. xoxo
@Ginny ... Yes a terrible day but what triumph in the end! Without these heroes doing what they did on that day, who knows how long it would have been before the world was free. xoxo
My father was a sailor in WWII in the South Pacific. But more than that, he was a mere boy, Lied about his age and joined up at 17 because the world was falling apart. My mother wrote a story about those years, about how her extended family was all together for Christmas in 1940, never imagining that they would not all be together again until 1945 because so many of the male family members went to war. Your story and thoughts of my family bring tears to my eyes. They really were the Greatest Generation. They saved the world, didn't they?
I've been following a 100 year old man who at the tender age of 20, was one of those heroes on the beaches of Normandy. He was flown there for this anniversary and seeing him take it in and speak has had me in tears. They were the greatest generation and we must never forget.
I had an uncle who was in the Battle of the Bulge and was the only one from his little group to survive it.
Bob is also a student of WWII and I've watched so many documentaries and movies along with him.
@Maryellen ... they did indeed. My late mother-in-law was one of ten children and she told stories of her brothers serving in the war. One such occasion two of the brothers managed to get together for a short few hours together when both of their units were in France. So many stories! Some sad, some joyous, all poignant! It was an amazing time in American and world history. Thank you for sharing your family's experience. xoxo
@Mari ... I think you've told me before about your uncle at the Battle of the Bulge! Incredible! I'm so glad that numbers of these heroes were able to make it to Normandy this week. TG told me that one died en route to the celebration! xoxo
Heroes...one and all...
Till We Meet Again...beautiful and so true.
hugs
Donna
That is a beautiful post. Sue's dad was in WW2, but I think he was elsewhere on that day, perhaps in Italy. Her grandfather was at Dieppe in WW1 and was able to go back for similar ceremonies when he was either in his late 90s or early100s (he lived until 105). Back in elementary school, possibly when I was 10 or 11, I read a book called The Dawn of D Day. I chose it because the author had my last name -- DA Rayner.
As ardent a student of history as I am, even talking to veterans who've experienced it, nothing can ever bring me to truly understand the horrors of such a moment...and in sheer guts it took to overcome the fear they had to in order to do the job before them. We can never thank them enough.
@Donna ... isn't that the most tender and poignant song? Always makes me cry. xoxo
@John ... Canadian troops were so very vital to the Allied effort. The world is forever grateful to them. How special that you and Sue are descended from these heroes. Impressive that you read a book about D-Day at such a young age! xoxo
@Mike ... The enormity of it! Knowing you probably won't even MAKE it to the beach, and going forward anyway. What a dreadful thing, and so heroic. God bless their memory. xoxo
Oh Jenny I love your little statue, thats so nice! I know there are HUNDREDS of young people now who DO NOT KNOW what D Day even WAS, HOW IT HAPPENED, WHAT IT MEANT, OR THE LOSSES. So much of the history is being lost, not taught. I loved this post and the previous one about the gardenias, oh my!.....they are so pretty! And they sure smell good, don't they? Maybe we will plant a gardenia bush here next, this spring it was azaleas and camellias. There were NO flowering bushes here At All, just one crepe myrtle tree. I'd like to put in forsythias sometime too. They are NO magnolias on the property.....zero, none! They grow wild out in the countryside and in the ditches and ALL OVER....none here, LOL!! We hope to plant a few magnolias next. Right now the flowers and vegetable and animals keep us busy and it gets harder when the heat hits like this past few days. Hope your week is going great! I sent an email, hope you got it?
@Debbi ... YES the gorgeous magnolia trees! I can't get enough of them, so gorgeous. But the smell of a gardenia is like nothing else in the world. And yes, so sad that young people do not know and appreciate (as best they can, as good as we have everything in this life THANKS to those heroes, and to God) the sacrifices that were made, and the horror of that war, and that day, for them. God help us to always remember, and to pass on the meaning of these events to the young ones. I don't think I've had a recent email from you but I will check! xoxo
Hello Jenny,
Thank you for this post. My grandpa was a World War II veteran. The stories... the bravery... the amount of death.... it really is hard to grasp. And it is very hard for me to grasp how so many Americans are clueless of the cost to be FREE!!!!
Thank you again for this post.
Carla
@Carla ... you are welcome, and I am so grateful for great Americans like your grandpa. God bless them and their memory! xoxo