Found This in a WWI Tunnel. Changed Everything

Deep in the Dolomites, crawling through a tunnel carved by soldiers who knew they might die here, I found a rusted button. Not heroic. Not Instagram-worthy. Just a small piece of someone's uniform, dropped a century ago. The guide kept talking about strategy and artillery positions. I couldn't stop staring at this button. Some 19-year-old probably fumbled with it, nervous, cold, homesick. Maybe he made it out. Maybe he didn't. Everyone else was taking photos of the tunnel walls. I pocketed the button without thinking. Not to steal history—to carry it. To remember that these weren't just battlefields. They were workplaces where kids like me went to die. Travel shows you pretty things. History shows you what pretty things cost. 🌍 #Travel #HistoryHitsHard #TravelTruth