H of Hero- Guee Henri

World War II may be the saddest, darkest and most horrifying time in our history. However, when I think about this period, it fills my heart with pride and respect for a man who sacrificed so much for his family. When the German army invaded Normandy (Northwest of France), my great-grandfather, Anatol Pimor, like many other men, had to go fight for our country. He left his home, his wife, and their nine children, changing the life of my grandfather Henri, and by domino effect, the life of all the next generation forever.

In France, the oldest man of the household is called the family chief. This man is in charge of providing food and furnishing all that his family needs. These were my great-grandfather’s main responsibilities until he had to leave for war. After he left, those tasks needed to be performed by somebody else. That person was Henri, my grandfather. Since he was the oldest of the nine children, it was his duty to go to work in order to support his family’s needs. At this time, my grandfather was around thirteen years old, and he had to stop going to school in order to go to work. The family consisted of ten members, including the mother (my great-grandmother), and nine children whom she raised by herself. The youngest one was Jeannine, who was only three years old at the time.

A new life started then for my grandfather - a life of hard labor, hunting, and gathering to support his family. Being too young to work in a factory or an office, Henri started to work as a farm boy. He was herding cows, and picking up dead wood from the forest of the nearby castle to provide heat in the family house. During the summer, my grandfather was even occasionally getting up between four and five in the morning to make the hay and to plow the field before the temperature became too high. Beside this intense physical work, Henri also started to put snares and back line in order to catch rabbits and fish. During the spring time, he would also climb trees in order to catch baby birds that they would prepare with vegetables for dinner. For him, every part of the day was an opportunity to get food. In order to not be arrested by the German army, he went to pick up seafood in the middle of the night, and covered his catch with snails, so the Germans would not find it.

All that work made him become a strong and smart man. He had twelve children during his life; my mother being the twelfth. In order to keep providing for his family, my grandfather kept poaching and gathering mushrooms and other vegetables. The war was coming toward the end at that time, and I am very proud to know that my grandfather not only helped his family during those difficult times but also all families and persons who needed it. He also helped resistant fighters and allies by hiding them. When the war was finally over, my grandfather was one of the volunteers to clear the bombs and mines that were still hidden in the sand on the beach. Today, we still have at home two big cartridges of a canon that he shot off. My grandfather taught his children all that he learned from that time, how to be strong, resourceful and compassionate in the face of adversity.

I have always looked and will always look at my grandfather as a hero. He left school and sacrificed his future as a teacher to work and support his family. The risks he took to help others are what inspires our family and make us stronger. We are proud to be part of this family, and have the blood of my grandfather running in our veins. Even if today I do not use the family name of Pimor anymore, I still feel like it is who I am. On the other hand, what is better than having been named after your hero? I do wear his name, Henri, and I am proud to be the great child of such a man. I now know that the “H” of Henri stands also for something else – Hero!