I stand
alone

on the beach and
imagine the young men
soldiers in their olive green
uniforms, wearing round,

bowl-like helmets – arms
raised, clutching rifles
pushing through the white-capped

surf onto the wet sandy ground
footsteps leaving pock
marks soon filled with
the tide and their blood

————

We recently visited Omaha beach in Normandy so this prompt brought to mind the movie “The Longest Day”