Before the Silence – Part 2
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The morning is gray and cold. Juha stretches his shoulders behind the trench. He has lain motionless in the snow all night. His muscles are stiff, his fingers sore from the frost.
His breath turns to steam.
Corporal Rantanen steps beside him.
“Private Juha.”
Juha rises immediately.
“Report to the captain.”
Juha nods. He does not ask why.
He walks to the dugout with a small sign hanging above the door. Inside, it is quiet. He knocks.
“Enter.”
Juha opens the door, steps in, and stands at attention.
“Sir.”
The captain lifts his gaze from the table. A map is spread open before him.
“At ease.”
Juha shifts to parade rest but remains upright.
The captain studies him for a moment. He does not smile. He does not raise his voice.
“As of this date,” he says calmly, “I promote you to corporal.”
Silence.
“Your service and conduct on the front line have demonstrated composure and skill.”
Juha does not move.
“Congratulations, Corporal.”
Juha nods briefly.
“Thank you, sir.”
Outside, the frost still bites. But now there is one more stripe on his sleeve.
And Juha feels no pride.
Only responsibility.
The dugout is dim. The stove glows faintly. The men speak quietly among themselves, but Juha sits slightly apart.
He takes a folded sheet of paper and a pencil from his pocket. For a moment, he simply looks at the blank page.
Then he begins to write.
Dear family,
Everything is well here. The frost is harsh, but one grows used to it. The forest is beautiful in winter, though there is not always time to admire it. We are in good condition, and the men take care of one another.
Do not worry about me.
He pauses.
He does not write about the shells.
He does not write about the man who fell three days ago.
He does not write about how silence sometimes feels worse than noise.
He continues.
I have been given a new assignment. I now serve as a sniper. It means I am often a little apart from the others, but do not worry — I know what I am doing.
And today I received word that I have been promoted to corporal. There is now one more stripe on my sleeve.
It does not change a man, but it brings a little more responsibility.
Please do not make too much of it. I am simply doing my duty, like everyone else.
Give my regards to everyone in the village.
And take care of one another.
Juha
He folds the paper.
For a moment, he looks at his hands. They are rough and cold.
Outside, the forest is dark.
Corporal Juha does not write what he has become.
But the letter travels home.
Evening in the farmhouse. A lamp burns above the table, and beyond the window the winter twilight glows blue. The mail arrived earlier by horse carriage to the village.
The father sits at the table. The mother dries her hands on her apron as the envelope is carefully opened.
The handwriting is familiar.
Juha.
The paper rustles in the silence.
The father reads aloud.
“Dear family…”
The mother keeps her gaze on the table. Her hands clasp together, but she does not interrupt.
“I have been given a new assignment. I now serve as a sniper…”
Silence.
The mother lifts her eyes.
“Is it… dangerous?” she asks quietly.
The father does not answer at once. He continues reading.
“And today I received word that I have been promoted to corporal. There is now one more stripe on my sleeve. It does not change a man, but it brings a little more responsibility.”
The father stops.
He nods slowly, more to himself than to anyone else.
“The boy will manage.”
The mother says nothing. She rises, walks to the window, and looks out into the dark yard.
To the place where Juha once chopped firewood.
The letter is carefully folded back into its envelope.
It is placed on the sideboard, where two earlier letters already lie.
The lamp burns for a while longer.
The winter silence is no longer the same as before.