Flanders 4/7/16

Dear Mother,

 Am enclosing a letter from Bert.  You will see he is not serious.  It is a good thing in a way that he and Will are out of the running—for a while anyway.  I wish they could stay out.  Have worried more about them than about myself, and that is no josh either.  At present are enjoying(?) a rain.  It makes the vegetation spring with remarkable quickness and the result is that we have some mowing to do between the trenches (Fritz and our own).  Have had no mail from Canada for ages.  Had a letter from the London Draders some time ago but it was the last mail I received.  Bert and Will have had none either, so they told me a day or so before they were plugged.

 According to the papers which we get here, the war is going very fine for us.  Old Fritz will learn a few things I can tell you.  He will learn not to kick the lion and bear and tramp on the lily at the same time.  As regards other news I think you get as many as we do where you are.  Do not ? ? we are ? ?.  What inconveniences we may be called upon to bear are in a just cause.  We all believe that and if you saw what we do here, you would wish—oh well—I long for the day when I can put aside paper and pencil and just live and work at peace.  It all seems like some dream.  This will likely be my last letter for some time, as we will likely be on missions where letter writing or receiving is rather impracticable.  Hate to go without getting any letters but one can’t get any if there are none.

 Love to you all,
Eugene