Relief
Sweat beading down from atop my forehead finds a path into my eyes, stinging my vision just as I dismount my black Arabian stallion. I feel alive! Across my back, under my arms, and between my legs, a stream of salty water pours forth, honoring a vigorous July morning ride.
Nothing feels better than pushing my steed and myself to the limit! I woke this morning in good spirits despite Franz-Joseph’s ultimatum. Why did he have to be so harsh? No one wants a European war! I pause for a moment before entering the hall of Potsdamplaz. Once I go in there, the world will come back.
My courtier of servants and advisers, always ready to break my sense of good feeling with the affairs of state, stand impatiently behind that door, anticipating my return. With a false sense of self-confidence and assuredness, I thunder into the hall, looking left and right at the gaggle of staff breathless for my every word.
“Any news?” I ask, not really wanting an affirmative reply.
“Yes, Kaiser, there is news of the Serbian reply to Austria-Hungary’s (A_H) ultimatum,” my foreign affairs adviser calls out from the front of the pack as he hands me a crisp sheet of finely typed letterhead.
With my left hand, I take the paper, slapping the back of his head with my right. We could all use a good laugh! Laughing vigorously, I look around the room. Everyone offers a nervous laugh, attempting not to look at the embarrassed man who handed me the note.
“I’ll look at this in my office. Bring me eggs,” I call out while moving through the mass of people to my private study.
Entering my office, I am delighted to see that everything is in its place.The servants are finally coming around. Show and presentation mean as much as substance.
I look down at the piece of paper before taking a seat behind my mahogany desk. Placing the crisp sheet upon the black blotter, I can’t help but be caught for a moment by the contrast between the darkness of the blotter and the bright paper upon which is written the Serbian reply to Austria-Hungary’s ultimatum. Then, I begin reading:
(Preamble) …[Serbia] cannot be held responsible for manifestations of a private character, such as articles in the press and the peaceable work of societies … [The Serbian government] have been pained and surprised at the statements, according to which, members of the Kingdom of Serbia are supposed to have participated in the preparations of the crime…
Threads of The War, Volume III Description:
Threads of The War, Volume III collects and shares personal narratives during real events across the span of The 20th Century’s War. Building off of the success of Volumes I and II, Threads III takes us from the private study of the Kaiser in the summer of 1914, through the trench on the last day of World War I, across the frosty Icelandic landmass in 1940 into the hills of Korea in 1951. Within short easily-readable, yet emotionally compelling, bursts Threads III continues opening the door to the personal facet of war; exposing the reader to the facts, fictions, and fallacies of armed violence. Following each story, the reader is provided specific and revealing facts about the events narrated, offering both entertainment and education within the time it takes to read a blog-post.
