Deliveries from home were a god send for soldiers, a letter, a parcel of food, socks or cigarettes.

Writing from France in 1918, Sergeant Sam Avery of the U.S. 32nd Division thanked his sister for a gift that had made its way across the Atlantic:

“Your parcel saved the day.”

Inside was a fruitcake. Sam cut it into pieces and shared it with the men in his squad during a brief lull in the fighting. For a few minutes, the Western Front tasted like home.

Something as ordinary as a homemade cake could lift spirits, restore strength, and reconnect soldiers with the world they hoped to return to. Small comforts mattered more than we’ll ever truly know.