Peace and Harmony

Ahhhhhh.  Normandy.  We are back to the country again.  Rolling green hills, puffy white clouds, small country roads canopied by trees, apple trees, and black and white spotted cows. 

The drive from the Loire Valley should not have taken us as long as it did, but we just couldn’t help stopping along the way and taking pictures.  Judging the weather the past few days, you just don’t know when the landscape will be bathed in sunlight again as it was this day. 

It was at one of these stops that we discovered one of Jeff’s hidden talents!  We were pulled along side of one of these country roads to take pictures of one of the first pastures of black and white cows that Normandy is known for.  Jeff, in an attempt to get the cows attention (always looking for the post card quality picture!) bellowed out his best cow call.  To what to our wondering eyes should appear, but the near stampede of 20 to 30 cows!  I am not kidding!  They were literally running over to us, with dust in their trail!  I barely got the video camera out in time, and hope that I caught it!

"Mooooooo"

"No way...they are running over to Jeff!"

Here they are!

Not one to believe in dumb luck, we put this same “talent” to the test several times…each time with exactly the same result!  Now…what to do with that talent back in CA.  Of this I am not sure.  But, there is one thing that I am sure of.  The next time that Jeff drives by a field of cows at home, expect him to pull over.  Then we will see if it is a true talent that crosses all language barriers, or simply a French thing. 

OK.  Let's just see...

"Moooooooo"

Unbelieveable!

That night, we arrived at what would be our last “home” in France.  A bed and breakfast in Normandy, called a “chamber d’hote” in France.   To our great pleasure, they also have a working farm!  (No cows for Jeff to work with though!)  Here they had chickens (which the kids were able to collect the eggs from in the morning for breakfast), 3 sheep, a donkey, a pony, 2 cats and a dog.  The family that owns the chamber d’hote is English, as much of the population in Normandy is.  I guess that they get more land and more sun here, than they do in England.  (Jeff would argue how much more sun they actually get as we have seen a lot of gray skies!)

With a dog there to greet us, 2 cats for Soren to chase around, a large yard, and an English speaking couple, the Browns were happy!  I was missing the French language a little if you can believe that…but I think that I was the only one.  It does seem to be a nice transition for us as we prepare to leave this country that we have all enjoyed so much.  Makenna and Rachel of course were thrilled just to sit and listen to the English accents!  They were quite willing to share with them their own version of an English accent and were wondering if they thought that they might be mistaken in England for being British.  No.  Darn.  Oh well, they still had a lovely time trying!

Our last home in France! 

"The eggs are warm!"

Hugo and Soren missing his own dog!

The next day, after collecting the eggs and having them for breakfast we set out for Mont St. Michel.  I knew that there would be a lot of tourists, but we did not care.  It is something that I have always wanted to see.  When we arrived the tide was low (and not dangerous this day) and so we walked around the outside of the abbey first.   Some of what we “squished” through was very much like quick sand.  The kids of course loved it.  I put on a good face, and squished through it with the rest of them trying very hard not to think about what might be in the muck (gag) or what the muck kind of reminded me of.  (Gag!)  Fortunately for me, on the other side of the bay was very dense, wet sand.  Not mucky.  Phew!  What a way to see Mont St. Michel!

We're sinking!

Ewwwwwww

Mont St. Michel from the back

After attempting to wash our feet off, we attempted to fight the crowds that were unlike any that we had seen as we tried to reach the abbey.  Forget it.  We chose to go to a German cemetery close by instead.  I know that it may seem odd to want to see such a place in Normandy where the Germans were the “bad guys.”  However, it was a powerful reminder to us all that in war, everyone suffers loss.  This cemetery-mortuary houses the remains of 12,000 German WWII soldiers brought to this location from all over France.   There were also pictures of some of the soldiers along with letters sent home.  People.  People that missed their loved ones.  People that never saw their loved ones again.  “The dead of this cemetery admonish to peace.”  Is the last thing that we read before leaving the cemetery.

We headed back to Mont St. Michel in time to see the abbey at night.  We were pleased to learn that not only did we dodge the huge crowds, but that they were having special music and lights in the abbey that night!  In various rooms, there were projected images, shadow plays depicting life at the abbey, a cello player, flautist and a harpist!  It created a beautiful ambiance in the abbey that we would not have gotten during the day.  We all agreed that had been a great decision.  On the way down, we stopped to have dinner (kids had steak and fries…the quintessential French meal apparently!) before heading back to the farm.

Now the little enfants were full and tired, (not to mention Jeff and I), night had fallen and the tourists had all gone home.  Well, all but us that is!  The benefit of which was that at night Mont St. Michel is illuminated and glorious!  We took it in as much as we could at the bottom of the hill before the kids were completely done.  However, we were delighted to be able to continue to see if from the warmth of our car for almost an hour as we drove away! 

The next day was much more quiet and somber.  We spent the day at the D-Day beaches of Normandy and the American Cemetery.  Our day started in Arromanches, which was “ground zero for the D-Day invasion.”  It is here that the Port Winston Artificial Harbor was created.  Basically (the shortened version) 17 old ships were sunk here to create a sea barrier, then 115 football field size cement blocks were also sunk to create a 4 mile long breakwater, and then finally seven floating steel “pierheads” with extendable legs were linked to shore by four mile long floating roads made of concrete pontoons.  Within 6 days of operation, 54,000 vehicles, 326,000 troops and 110,000 of goods had crossed the English Channel and the allied toehold on Normandy was secure. 

Amazingly, much of this temporary harbor can still be seen in the ocean, and much has been washed up on to the sand and can be seen and even touched in low tide. 

It is quite “eerie” to see these and other remnants from that time, still here as if it had just recently happened.

Port Winston Artifical Harbor in the ocean and some of the washed up parts on the beach

Before going out onto the beach here, we watched a 20 minute video called “The Price of Freedom” made up of clips and video from WWII as well as images of the same areas as they are today.  For us, it really brought the events of that time into clear and real focus.  Much of the footage that was shown was filmed in areas that we had just seen.  To think of what had happened in this most beautiful and serene countryside…

We then drove about 10 minutes to see the “Longues-sur-Mer Gun Battery.”  300 yards inland, Four German casemates were built to guard against seaborne attacks.  These are the only original coastal artillery guns remaining in place in the D-Day region.  The guns could hit targets up to 12 miles away with relatively fine accuracy.  It took seven soldiers to manage each gun, which could be loaded and fired six times per minute.  The shells weighed 40 pounds.  They were camouflaged by netting over the top, and were therefore impossible to be seen by bombers.  They had to be taken out by the allies, but it proved to be one of the most difficult tasks as it had to be done on ground.

Longues-sur-Mer Gun Batteries

Just a few minutes away, on a bluff just above Omaha Beach, and the ye of the D-Day storm, is the American Cemetery.  Before going outside we spent a fair amount of time inside the visitor center.  There was a fabulous countdown of events leading up to D-Day, computer terminals with access to a database containing the story of each US serviceman who died in Normandy, and at the heart of the Visitor Center were stories, pictures and video of the men who fought in Normandy.  This was an incredible look into some of these men’s personal lives and their sacrifices.  Again, these were people.  People wanting to serve their country.  People promising to return home.  People who are buried here.

The sight just outside was one that I had seen countless times on TV, in a movie, or some kind of print.  However, the sight to my eyes was much more dramatic that I would have expected.  When we walked outside, you only see one portion of the cemetery.  That was enough to have a dramatic effect on me.  The pictures, video, letters and information that I have been reading, along with the many historical fiction novels that I have read about this time came to a head that took my breath away when I stepped outside. 9,387 brilliant white marble crosses and Stars of David lined up in perfect rows.  Each one with a name, home state, and date of death inscribed into the front, and their dog tag numbers inscribed on the back. 

During the war, the dead were buried in temporary cemeteries throughout various parts of Normandy.  After the war, the families could decide if they wanted to have the remains of their loved on sent home, or buried here.  61 percent chose to have them buried here, alongside the people that they fought with and for.

While there, we heard the familiar sound of taps was playing in the background as they lowered the flag for the day.  It was poignant and peaceful.  It was somber and yet uplifting.  I don’t know how else to describe this to you.  I was overwhelmed.  The number of lives that were lost…the sacrifices made…the destruction…the evil…the broken families…and finally, the message of peace.

“The soldiers graves are the greatest preachers of peace.”  Albert Schweitzer

After leaving the cemetery, we drove down to Omaha Beach and walked out onto it.  Images of what we had learned throughout the day flooded me as I imagined what happened on this very beach just 67 years ago.  The hills above were covered with Germans that had machine guns that could fire 1,200 rounds per minute.  The Allies had to run for their lives through 500 yards of water and sand out onto this open beach while dodging the in comprehendible number of bullets showering them.  It is no wonder that this beach is nicknamed “Bloody Omaha.”  This is where the highest rate of casualties in Normandy occurred.  It is estimated that on the first day of the D-Day campaign there was 10,500 casualties (killed, wounded or missing) of which 6,000 were Americans.

The Germans had put tons and tons of obstacles on the beach before the D-Day invasion to disrupt landings.  Metal poles, barbed wire, and more than four million mines were scattered among the beaches.  More than 150,000 tons of metal were removed after the war, but they know that they can never remove it all.  So, in low tide, you will come across pieces of washed up metal from that time.  Unreal.  In the midst of all of this there are families with small children camped out on the beach for the day.  They have sand toys, buckets, kites, and picnics.   Just another day out at the beach.

Omaha Beach

 As we walked up into the hills above where the Germans would have been stationed, literally killing as many people as they could as they stormed the beach and then the hills, we felt compelled to just sit.  If only the soil could talk.  What stories would it have to tell?  Who walked there?  Whose blood was spilled there?  Who died here?  Who survived here?  What must it have sounded like that day?

The hills above Omaha Beach where the Germans were waiting and ready...Soren is defending us

I read somewhere that there would be no war if it were up to the wounded.  For the agony of being wounded and dying was greater than any hate that would cause war.  I could not get that image out of my mind.  Might there have been a German, a Canadian, a British, a French and an American soldier all there….wounded…aware of each other’s presence?  What would they be thinking?  Would they say anything to the other?  Would they see the pain in each other’s faces? 

Now, as we sat on the hill just above Omaha beach we watched the families play below.  Perhaps this is the message of peace.  If there had not been such sacrifice, then perhaps this beach would not be as beautiful and peaceful as it is today.  So, maybe this is exactly as it should be.  Peace and harmony.