In Flanders fields the poppies blow

Between the crosses, row on row,

That mark our place; and in the sky

The larks, still bravely singing, fly

Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the dead. Short days ago

We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,

Loved, and were loved, and now we lie

In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:

To you from failing hands we throw

The torch; be yours to hold it high.

If ye break faith with us who die

We shall not sleep, though poppies grow

- In Flanders fields, Lieutenant-Colonel John McCrae, 1915

May 27, 1990

Since early in the morning, I was feeling not so well so I asked Carter to stay with me at home. I had never been gone through any day when I missed early walking at the park since my childhood. It kind of made me sad but I didn’t have any other option instead of staying at home. Carter put the curtains off from the windows, a sudden ray of sunlight entered in my room, piercing inside my body, giving a hope of life. He helped me out when I freshened up and even during my breakfast. Since he thought I wouldn’t be able to live alone in my house with my illness, he had made his routine to visit me more often, not just in the morning but in other periods of a day too. When I was finally composed, I began the story.

When the First World War ended, the British Empire made a free association of different states by the name of British Commonwealth of Nations in which Canada was and is the leading state with other states like India, Australia, New Zealand, and several African and Caribbean countries. Then a shift in Canada’s economy and business occurred with a low employment ratio. The stock market badly came crashing in 1929. Unemployment declined by 27% leading to the shutdown of many businesses. The Western farmers of Canada encountered low grain prices and severe drought that made their land of no use.

There was badly a need for safety insurance in minimum wages for the unemployment chaos. Founded in 1934, The Bank of Canada created a financial system that provided a stability to the growing decline in the money supply and economy. Immigration was then strictly stopped for some period of time making many refugees turned away even Jews people as they wanted to escape from Nazi Germany in 1939. Against Nazism and Fascism, the Allies attacked the areas of Europe filled with Nazi, Canada heavily took part in that war and helped out to set Italy free in 1943-44. Known as the D-Day in the history of France, Normandy invaded France on June 6, 1944, our brave 15,000 Canadian troops bravely fought with the German Army and captured Juno Beach, a great national achievement indeed it was. In the D-Day, one in ten allied soldiers was Canadian. The Canadian Army also set-free the Netherlands from the German forces on May 8, 1945. This is how the six years of war came to end in Europe.

I coughed up heavily, sounded like my throat wasn’t supporting my old voice. It was Carter who insisted me to stop with tears in his eyes. He looked as if anybody pins him he would start crying, no worries that he was now a big boy. After all his struggles, I still demanded to continue what I was saying because I got a sense that if I couldn’t complete it now, I wouldn’t complete it on some other day.

1939 was the year of the Second World War after Adolf Hitler’s invasion, a German dictator and National Socialist, he invaded Poland and conquered most of the part of Europe. Canada actively took part in it. More than one million Canadians especially Newfoundlanders, Newfoundland was a distinct British entity, served in the Second World War in corresponding to the 11.5 million population of Canada at that time. Out of these 44,000 Canadian soldiers died. Canada proved itself to be the bravest of all in Hong Kong, attacked by Imperial Japan in 1941 and Nazi-controlled Dieppe near France in 1942. The Royal Canadian Air Force actively participated in the Battle of Britain. Canada was the only country among the Commonwealth states to trained around 130,000 Allied aircrews. Moreover, The Royal Canadian Navy carried on with the same pace in the Battle of the Atlantic against German submarines and fed and provided clothes and other things to Britain. By the end of Second World War, Canada reached the status of the third largest Navy in the world.  

Japan took over the Canadians but it didn't last long. It was the Pacific war that made Japan cross the Aleutian Islands, attack the lighthouse in Vancouver, and tried to blast BC and Prairies with fire balloons. They even treated the Canadians prisoner of war very badly at Hong Kong. Japan surrendered to this Pacific War continuing from four years in 14, 1945. This changed the face of Canada as the Japan origin people had to force out of the country by the Public opinion of BC and Federal Government took over their properties, even though, the military and the RCMP told Ottawa that they had welcomed a big danger because of it. In 1988, the government of Canada felt sorry for their bad actions in the wartime and got overcome with the victims.

“This is, my son, your country and you, me, and everyone owe our motherland something big. And if we can do the huge, we would still never return it what it has given us. The debts would still be high”

Tears ran through my eyes as I finished the story. My last wish has been fulfilled, now if the Grim Reaper comes and takes my soul away, I would die happily.

To be continued…

What happened to Carter after that? And did grandpa recover from his illness? Make sure you have enough patience to find it soon because the story hasn’t completed yet!