‘Milo, boy, come here!’ Audrey cried out to her dog, who was desperately rushing around the beach. She couldn’t imagine spending the day anyplace else on such a wonderful sunny day.

That is why she accepted a position at Florida Gulf Coast University. It was close to the shore, and students and staff were constantly on the beach.

She like bringing her dog since he was generally well-behaved, though he did occasionally dig in the sand and make a large mess.

Audrey tried to call him because that’s what he was doing right now. She screamed at him again, this time whistled to attract his attention.

Normally, he would rush to her anytime she called, but something was keeping him from doing so. ‘Oh, that’s fantastic. He was chewing on something ‘She grumbled as she rose from her beach chair and dashed away before he swallowed something odd.

‘Are you a relative of Mr. Hammer?’ she inquired, and he nodded. Milo, fortunately, was not interested in eating what he had discovered. She hadn’t gone far when he began sprinting toward her, and the dog grabbed the thing from her hands.

It was a dog tag from the army. It was unusual to come across something like that on the beach, and this one appeared to be rusted.

It was Tom Hammer’s, and it had his date of birth, blood type, and phone number. Audrey considered dialing the number, but based on his birthdate, Mr. Hammer might be long gone. He most certainly served in World War II, which was her specialism as a professor.

She became intrigued and wanted to bring it home with her. The phone number was disconnected, as expected, but she continued her hunt for Mr. Hammer.

She couldn’t tell who to contact because there were thousands of males with the same name online. It appeared to be a dead end.

But, because she had access to a better database at the university library, she began her search there. And, after sifting through various databases, she discovered that Mr. Hammer had died while serving in the war, which made her sad.

‘It’s incredible how many people died. As a result, we must never forget our past “She told herself this as she clutched the tag even more in her fingers.

‘The only way we will not repeat history is to understand it, and we must honor all of the sacrifices made that day.’

Surprisingly, Tom Hammer, like her, was a citizen of Fort Myers, and he was buried in the Fort Myers cemetery. She went to his cemetery to leave the necklace because she couldn’t locate anything about his family.

‘Thank you for your service, Mr. Hammer,’ she said as she laid the necklace on top of his tombstone. She wished she knew his military rank so she could address him properly, but Mr. would suffice.

She couldn’t get Mr. Hammer out of her head for some reason, so she began visiting his grave once a week, and it looked so serene. However, the army tag vanished one day, and she was furious.

She wanted to express her displeasure, but this was a public space. Anyone is welcome to enter. It may have been taken by anyone.

However, she had a thought. What if a family member came to visit and took the tag? She sincerely hoped it was the case and not a routine robbery.

Audrey noticed an army tag around the neck of a man standing over Mr. Hammer’s tombstone the following time she went to see him. She took her time approaching, not wanting to startle that individual.

‘Hello?’ she inquired softly.
The man turned to face her, and he couldn’t possibly be her age. He raised his eyebrows and stared at her with a confused face.

‘Are you a relative of Mr. Hammer?’ she inquired, and he nodded. ‘Oh, so you took his army tag?’

‘Yes, of course. It just showed up one day. Every now and then, I pay a visit to Grandpa ‘Looking at the tombstone, he stated. But he caught himself and returned her gaze. ‘Just a moment. Why are you inquiring?’

‘The jewelry, in fact, was discovered on the shore. My dog, to be precise, was the one who discovered it. It had been buried beneath the sand.

I delivered it to your granddad. I’m a university history professor who specializes in World War II ‘Audrey shrugged her shoulders as she spoke.

‘I get what you mean. Thank you for bringing it to our attention. My grandma told me stories of my grandfather and his huge sacrifice as I grew up.

My father was a baby during the war, but he eventually enlisted, and I wanted to join the army to follow in his footsteps, but I have a poor knee, and they wouldn’t let me.

I had no choice but to pay him a visit and pay tribute to his memories’ added the man. ‘By the way, my name is Matthew.’

‘It’s nice to meet you. My name is Aubrey. My family has a military past, which is why I’ve always been interested in the subject ‘she remarked, a small smile on her face.

They stared at the grave in quiet as Matthew hummed. He then asked her to go get some coffee… The rest, as they say, is history.