Song: The Stroke of Midnight
Album: Where Time Stands Still
Copyright 2000 Amie Ridley
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The Stroke of Midnight Story

0:00 On a cold dark starry wintry night, in the middle of nowhere, a soldier crouches in a trench awaiting orders from his commander. Gunfire has been heavy all day but now an unnatural stillness fills the air. It is the stroke of midnight.

0:37 Signals are passed down the ditch; the enemy is on the move. Distant scuffles across the sand can be heard as the men position themselves to fight. Another night is about to be a casualty of war.

1:06 A volley of fire lights up the night as gunfire erupts overhead. The soldier is engaged in battle and the war continues.

Stay low. Stay focused. Stay alive. These are the thoughts that fill the soldier’s mind.

1:48 The next phase of the battle rages on. Tanks and missiles are set into motion, as streaks of fireworks soar across the field.

2:12 Long gone is the night of cloudless skies and peaceful nights. Fear becomes a friend, and peace is merely a cosmic fantasy only known to the universe watching from above.

2:27 It is the stroke of midnight as the soldier searches through a battle scarred town for survivors on his first assignment since arriving with his platoon. He hears a familiar melody playing over and over. As he sneaks behind destroyed buildings and broken rock, he finds a little girl’s pink music box under some debris. The ballet dancers still twirl as the music slowly begins to die and joins the dead. Then he remembers the tune.

3:07 It is the lively tune that was played the day he left the harbor. A parade and fanfare was given to the soldiers as they left to protect freedom. The confetti fluttered in the air, the band danced along the streets, and the crowds cheered the men and women headed off to war.

3:33 As the soldier experiences the celebration of his oath he swells with patriotism and love for his country. He begins to march a little prouder and the thought of his wife becomes a banner to protect his beloved home and people.

4:12 Thinking of his wife the soldier remembers the first time he saw her. It was a church picnic and there she stood on the summer lawn by the lake in her white daisy printed dress. Her golden hair shimmered in the warm sunlight and he was completely enamored with her. She twirls to show her dress off to her friends and laughs with joy as the soldier watches her from a nearby oak tree. That was the day he introduced himself to her and the courtship began.

5:19 Daisies, that was her favorite flower and on the day of their wedding the church was filled with them. The bouquet of daisies she held as she walked down the aisle symbolized everything he had grown to love about her, the gentleness, beautiful, and playful personality of this woman who said yes to him.

5:53 Then the soldier remembers the last time he saw his wife’s face. Tears streaking down her cheeks as the train station chimes midnight and the train bellows its horn. The train will take the soldier to the harbor where he will catch his transport. He climbs aboard after kissing his wife one last time. She waves good-bye waving her ivory handkerchief in the air.

6:46 But that seems like ages ago. It is a dangerous memory to have in this part of the world, as the cold wintry starry night comes alive. It is the stroke of midnight and as the ticking countdowns into its usual alarm of tomorrow, the present demands the soldier’s attention. Is it really tomorrow or just another repeat of today?

A volley of fire lights up the night as gunfire erupts overhead. The soldier is engaged in battle and the war continues.

Stay low. Stay focused. Stay alive. These are the thoughts that fill the soldier’s mind.

7:20 The war rages for hours and the sound is deafening. Streaks of fireworks soar across the field as the night is filled with putrid smoke and hot metal.

7:33 Then the order is given: CHARGE! The soldier leaves the safety of his trench to storm the field. Everything is chaos and confusion. The smoke blinds the battleground as the soldier slices through it to make contact with the enemy with his blade. The only instinct is survival. The only emotion is rage.

8:27 But when the smoke clears and the war ceases, will the soldier be left standing?

8:37 It is a cold dark starry wintry night in the middle of nowhere. It is the stroke of midnight as the wounded are gathered in a tent and a soldier crouches in a trench awaiting orders from his commander.

9:05 Eventually the bell tolls for everyone. Eventually tomorrow finally comes. But for one soldier the stroke of midnight is the small sliver of time that winds everything into oblivion.