I am sorry for not being able to write to you sooner, but this is the first time I could write to you in a long time. I guess I have been skipping it but I do not now what to say, to you. I do not want to sound depress or anything that would make you up set, but just make it clear I am doing fine. I hope everything is all right there at the house? How is your health, are you ok? How is the family doing on food and medicine? I hope they are giving you everything that you need.
Today I ate pretty well, I had some pig, pancakes, and we had some vegatables. Since we have not been eating like this in a long time. I started thinking about you and the rest of the family. I hope you and the family are all right. I won a few games of pocker against my friends and won some smokes. I know what you would say, you shouldn't be smoking but there is nothing much to do. I now that is no excuse but it makes relax, and comfortable. To be able to think about something other than war and about nothing it is like a relif.
Our life here is pretty much the same thing over and over again. You go out to fight, come back eat, and then you sleep. It repeats and repeats we fight, we eat, and then we sleep, that is pretty much our life. When I mean it repeats it repeats some times the food is the same as yesterday. One time I thought I was repeating the day before again, very trying. I am sorry if my handwriting looks horrible but I can not find a proper pencil to write. All's well ends well as they say and I hope that comes out to be true, I am ready for this war to end. I must say my good bye's now it is time to go out again. Good-bye and take care of the family for me.
Sincerely,
Paul
W.N.Hodgson (1893-1916) "Before Action"
By all the glories of the day And the cool evening's benison,By that last sunset touch that lay Upon the hills where day was done,By beauty lavisghly outpoured And blessings carelessly received,By all the days that I have lived Make me a solider, Lord.By all of man's hopes and fears, And all the wonders poets sing,The laughter of unclouded years, And every sad and lovely thing;By the romantic ages stored With high endeavor that was his,By all his mad catastrophes Make me a man, O Lord.I, that on my familiar hill Saw with uncomprehending eyes A hundred of Thy sunsets spill Their fresh and sanguine sacrifice,Ere the sun swings his noonday sword Must say goodbye to all of this;--By all delights that I shall miss, Help me to die, O Lord.
This poem displays Paul's desperate need to have the war come to an end. It shows the last day that Paul is still living and he notices the sun and everything that is beautiful. He remembers the past, of loving memories and the beginning of when he was turn into a solider. A soldier of war doesn't lasts forever and it is time to end this awful war. In the last chapter of All Quiet on the Western Front Paul is finally ready for this war to end. He stands up on the battle field looking towards the sky ready to die. This poem is like him saying good bye before he dies, he will have regrets but he is ready to die. As he walks down the hill on his last day towards the trenches to die he is finally able to gain peace and look forward to heaven as having the war be over.
The clouds of war and destruction are moving away, the sun is finally able to come out. Paul has reached the decision of ending his life. He is ready to end the war and to join his friends, and the only way to gain peace is to die on the battlefield. If he survives the war, his life will be unreal because he can't see himself surviving without it. When Paul was at his home town he could hardly stand it because there was no war, no suffering and no death. Paul is ready for it all to end, the pressure of war is effecting him. This picture shows the end of the storm, a storm of war, the sun is coming out with the joy of the end and of the joy of death. Paul has gain his freedom from war and the only way for him to do that is to die. No longer have to worry about life and the problems of war, Paul's spirit drifts towards the sun.
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