the blind artist | Teen Ink

the blind artist

March 21, 2018
By ethanbas BRONZE, New City, New York
ethanbas BRONZE, New City, New York
3 articles 0 photos 0 comments

I knew moving to munich was a risk,But I had to escape . Countries were arming up and I didn’t want anything to do with it . I decided for myself I wouldn’t be a pawn in mans madness. Although I enjoyed my sketches and watercolors others did not . A year later the great war started and I had to go.War found me anyway. The weapons being developed at the time were the  works of the Devil himself. We had minimal training , Germany needed soldiers on the front lines quick. Today we had to hold the line, if one flank fell it was over. The british would storm in and we would have to hold them off. Disease was a silent enemy. Sicknesses like trench foot were common in the trench, leading to death or amputation. Almost everyone suffered from shell shock, a person in our squadron had a serious case and went ballistic. Some lied about their age just to serve, we had an 11 year old in our unit. What drives a child to serve ?Bravery, courage, pride, nationalism?no, foolishness . Some of my comrades perished . I had found out that during a raid the 11 year old  was shot in the leg and stabbed by an enemy's bayonet. The next siege I was apart of , My commanding officer had blown his whistle , the chaos begins .  We get up out of the trench kar98s in hand running towards the unknown. Some of us made it across no mans land , more than most decimated by machine gun fire and grenades. Some of us regroup in a crater. About 20 feet from us is the British trenches. The highest ranked officer says “ fix bayonets” . After everyone fits their bayonets on their rifle 2 men throw 2 potato masher grenades into the trenches. Then after the grenades exploded all 42 of us ran into their trenches to cause absolute mayhem.we unleashed horror unto those young men. We made such a disruption that our men who were still charging the trenches swarmed and over took the machine gun batteries and the British riflemen. The british were completely astonished.not only did our infantry work our new stormtroopers worked amazingly. Armed with mp-18,bulletproof armor,and enough potato masher grenades to bomb the whole trench.hearing the agonizing screams of bayonets impaling organs and sabers splitting flesh like like moses parting the red sea.shortly after we took the trenches they tried and succeeded to flush us out using mustard gas. When they dispersed the gas some left, some put on their gas masks. I tried to put mine on but my moustache was too thick and big . I had to cut it then and there. It took too long and i got affected by the gas . all I remember is being  pulled out of the trench by someone in my unit. Hello ? I ask.Is anyone there?,why can’t I see? “Its ok .” someone responded, “you’re in a hospital in germany”. “Why can’t I see?” I ask . “temporary blindness from the mustard gas”She responds. “For the record what’s your name soldier?” the warm voice asks. “My name?,my name is hitler, adolf hitler.”



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