12 May 2019, 3:00pm
The world sits still and unites
in prayer. Surely, this can’t happen? Not now, not today? We thought it was
over, we thought we’d never have to live through something like this again.
Decades had passed, decades
during which hope blossomed, virtue prevailed, and all was right with the
world. We can only imagine the pain our parents suffered, but as a new
generation grew older the terrible memories faded into the past. There was a
new world order now, we had been at peace for so long, so how had it come to
this?
To remind us of the horrors of
yesteryear we had only photographs and grainy black and white footage. It all
seemed so far away, a bygone era where battles were played out on cold, muddy fields
by men sporting thick, heavy uniforms, the scars of which had taken so long to
heal but now felt so distant.
Back in the day, news travelled
slowly, but this is a new era, of course. Technology has changed everything.
Families gather together on the sofa in front of their high-definition
television sets, students desperately search for a decent online stream from
their university halls, whilst some of the older generation are sat in their
kitchens listening to their radios, all following this afternoon’s events with
grim fascination as they unfold.
As hostilities commence, it all
seems eerily familiar. The weathered face of the German general contorts into a
snarl as he barks orders at his men; he’s seen it all before, but never with so
much at stake. Young men, some of them barely out of their adolescence, hurl
themselves into the heart of the action with not a second’s hesitation. They
have their orders, they know their destiny is in their hands, and to give
anything less than their all would be the ultimate betrayal to those for whom
today means so much.
12 May 2019, 4.47pm
Deadlock. Over an hour and a half
of intense combat and neither side has yielded an inch. Bodies are bruised, legs
and minds are heavy, and some men have already fallen by the wayside. Yet still
they fight, still they continue. It’s not over until it’s over.
And suddenly, amongst the chaos, amongst
the mass of bodies, one brave English soldier stands alone, seemingly forgotten
by those around him. This soldier is one of a dying breed, his clean-cut
features and finely-coiffed side parting a throwback to simpler times. He’s the
kind of person every man wants on his side, ready to do the dirty work and loyal
to the end.
This is it. This is his moment. He
pulls the trigger and time stands still. Silence. Silence.
Fifty thousand blood-curdling
screams as he hits his mark.
12 May 2019, 4.48pm
The whistle blows. Liverpool have
just won the league at Anfield. And Jordan Henderson of all people has scored a last-minute
winner.
Fuck’s sake.
THE END
