Normandy Visit, 2006, by Andrew Sheldon
From MemoryArchive
Who: Andrew Sheldon What: Visit to Normandy When: Summer of 2006 Where: Normandy, France
Although the battle took place more than half a century ago, I have never had an experience with warfare that felt as close as the time that I spent on the beaches of Normandy. In the summer of 2006, I studied abroad in Europe. I traveled all over parts of France, Spain, the U.K., Italy, and Turkey. However, the memory that stands out most from that trip is the day that I spent touring in and around Normandy, France. The tour started with a visit to what remained of the makeshift port that the Allies constructed in the days following the D-Day invasion, then it moved on to a place high along the coastal ridge where a few German bunkers and artillery positions still remained. We then visited the Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial overlooking Omaha Beach, where nearly 10,000 American soldiers are laid to rest. Finally, the tour concluded with a visit to Omaha Beach itself. I do not think I have ever felt so minor or insignificant as I did that for that hour that I spent on the beach. It was hard to imagine what the beach would have looked like back in June of 1944, especially when only a few feet from me some toddlers were trying their hardest to keep their sandcastle from eroding away due to the rising tide. I wondered if their, the toddlers, generation would be able to understand and appreciate what happened there. Then as quickly as I thought of the question, I answered it—simply by looking at how little of a grasp my generation (myself included) had on the heroic sacrifice that took place there.
