In August of 1944, Roland Brown, then a quartermaster of the East Yorkshire Regiment fighting Nazi Germany in France, stepped on a landmine.
He survived. And until his death at the ripe age of 94, no one knew just how much of a badass he was.
After the war, he’d always say he had a bullet in his leg. He wouldn’t have his kids and grandkids sit on his knee because of the wound.
His daughter said her father would never complain about the wound, and traveled the world, frequently going to America and Australia. Every time he went through security, he would set off the metal detectors.
And then, after his death, his family came to scatter his ashes and asked if they found the bullet.
It wasn’t a bullet. It was a big sack of metal. Over 6oz, to be precise. The picture above is, indeed, the metal that was in his body throughout the majority of his life. The landmine had sent shrapnel into his leg, and at the time, doctors thought it safest to not operate and leave the metal in there.
Later, after his death, his granddaughter found his diary. In the diary, he noted that of the 900 original members of his regiment, only 29 came home.
Question: Who’s the BAMF in your life?