A Soldier He Served His Time In Bombay 1939

A Soldier He Served His Time In Bombay 1939

My uncle fought in Bombay

1939, when the world was breaking

not behind a desk

not fixing engines

but running through smoke

with gun in hand

He saw the boys turn older

before the first sunrise

heard the orders barked

felt the weight of fear

but never said it loud

He told me about the nights

when everything shook

and the ground screamed back

he carried more than weapons

he carried the names

of those who never made it home

The docks burned once

a fire that swallowed hope

and still he stood

shoulder to shoulder with men

who didn’t always make sense

but fought anyway

He never claimed to be a hero

just a man who lived to tell

how war doesn’t come with flags

just with silence after the gunfire stops

I asked him once

if he was scared

he said

you don’t have time for that

not when you’re fighting to breathe

God bless my Uncle John Hodson

rest in peace always

a very brave man

now deceased