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Thoughts from a Trench
A short story by Unkle Monkee
A short story by Unkle Monkee
Crouched up to keep himself warm, the American Doughboy still shivered."How long have we been out here?" he thought
to himself. He volunteered for service as soon as the war call went out. He knew relatives who served during the
Spanish-American War. He heard stories of glory. The Rough Riders charge up San Juan Hill. The naval battles in the
Philippines and in Cuba. So when President Woodrow Wilson declared war and entered the United States to the great war
raging in Europe, Samuel J. Coffey signed up or adventure.
Now wallowing in mud and stench, Coffey was experiencing none of the glory or adventure he heard of. Instead he was in a
trench cold and starving. There was no glory in this war. He wondered silently,"Funny how the newspapers never tell you
about the misery." And misery is what he felt. He longed to be home in a warm bed.
He was fortunate. His unit had been "sent over the top" twice. It was mayhem and madness. The German machine guns
raked withering fire across the charging troops. He lost many buddies. Coffey wasn't overly religious but he felt God or
someone greater than himself preserve him thus far. He wondered if he'd be so lucky the next time. Would God turn His
attention else where? He tried not to think about it to much. Still a shiver went up his spine and it wasn't from the cold.
A shot rang out in the distance. He couldn't determine if it was friend or foe. Snipers were constant threat. No one dared
stick their head above for a look. Every once in a while a soldier would stick a can on the end of his rifle and hold it above
the trench. The Huns were happy for the target practice. Sergeant O'Malley reprimanded a few for such games but it still
was done. Coffey wondered if a sergeant on the other side reprimanded the machine gunners for playing along.
The boredom in between fighting got to both sides. Coffey remembers one cold night they could hear the Germans singing.
A raiding party went into no man's land for a closer look. The enemy trenches were sparsely manned. There was a group of
Huns drinking and singing not to far off though. When the report came back to the American lines they started to sing too.
Coffey belted out the songs. The Germans had gone quiet. The Americans laughed and sang another song. They could hear
German laughter and they broke out in song again. Then silence. So the Americans began to sing again. Before long the two
sides took turns singing and serenading each other. At least for one night the boredom was gone. Coffey shook his head, it's
a damn shame we had to fight this war. He hadn't really thought of Germans as ordinary fellows like him and his fellow
troops. The more he thought about it he realized that they were probably a bunch of farmers, field hands, craftsmen and
ordinary men like himself. Damn this war!
to himself. He volunteered for service as soon as the war call went out. He knew relatives who served during the
Spanish-American War. He heard stories of glory. The Rough Riders charge up San Juan Hill. The naval battles in the
Philippines and in Cuba. So when President Woodrow Wilson declared war and entered the United States to the great war
raging in Europe, Samuel J. Coffey signed up or adventure.
Now wallowing in mud and stench, Coffey was experiencing none of the glory or adventure he heard of. Instead he was in a
trench cold and starving. There was no glory in this war. He wondered silently,"Funny how the newspapers never tell you
about the misery." And misery is what he felt. He longed to be home in a warm bed.
He was fortunate. His unit had been "sent over the top" twice. It was mayhem and madness. The German machine guns
raked withering fire across the charging troops. He lost many buddies. Coffey wasn't overly religious but he felt God or
someone greater than himself preserve him thus far. He wondered if he'd be so lucky the next time. Would God turn His
attention else where? He tried not to think about it to much. Still a shiver went up his spine and it wasn't from the cold.
A shot rang out in the distance. He couldn't determine if it was friend or foe. Snipers were constant threat. No one dared
stick their head above for a look. Every once in a while a soldier would stick a can on the end of his rifle and hold it above
the trench. The Huns were happy for the target practice. Sergeant O'Malley reprimanded a few for such games but it still
was done. Coffey wondered if a sergeant on the other side reprimanded the machine gunners for playing along.
The boredom in between fighting got to both sides. Coffey remembers one cold night they could hear the Germans singing.
A raiding party went into no man's land for a closer look. The enemy trenches were sparsely manned. There was a group of
Huns drinking and singing not to far off though. When the report came back to the American lines they started to sing too.
Coffey belted out the songs. The Germans had gone quiet. The Americans laughed and sang another song. They could hear
German laughter and they broke out in song again. Then silence. So the Americans began to sing again. Before long the two
sides took turns singing and serenading each other. At least for one night the boredom was gone. Coffey shook his head, it's
a damn shame we had to fight this war. He hadn't really thought of Germans as ordinary fellows like him and his fellow
troops. The more he thought about it he realized that they were probably a bunch of farmers, field hands, craftsmen and
ordinary men like himself. Damn this war!
This short story is more of a brain storming session I've done. I've come up with an idea for a historical novel. I'd like to
take an American World War I unit and present a story from the view of an ordinary soldier. This is just a small section of
what I envision the story to tell.
take an American World War I unit and present a story from the view of an ordinary soldier. This is just a small section of
what I envision the story to tell.