On Memorial Day, my thoughts very often turn to my Grandfather. He's truly one of my favorite people--always has been!Granddaddy served in the Marines during World War II. He saw a lot of action all over the South Pacific. I don't remember Granddaddy telling "war stories" when I was young. I remember seeing the Japanese sword that he has for the first time and I was probably about 10. It was then that I became curious about that period in his life.
He was drafted into the military as a very young, newly married man. He was very far away from home for probably the first time in his life. His first son was born while he was away--in fact, my dad was about 18 months old the first time that Granddaddy saw him. I can't imagine the emotions that he must have felt and probably had to keep "shut off" most of the time.
I was much older when I began to realize how much death and destruction he saw. And, what he had to do in order to stay alive. Now knowing just some of what he saw and went through--both in the war and after he came home--I have even more respect and admiration for my Granddaddy.
In this age, when mention of war sends people running for their respective sides and voicing their opinions, it may be worth remembering that when all is said and done, there's not much "pretty" about war regardless of how noble the objective. There seems to be two distinct sides--one America is right and the other America is wrong. I'm not sure that the lines are that clear and I'm not going to debate the "rightness or wrongness" of the current war. There are certainly things that are worth fighting for; I'd even say there are some things that must be fought for. I just hope that we, as a nation and as individuals, don't forget that there are people on both sides going through the ugliness of war.
In God's sovereignty, Granddaddy came home from the war relatively unscathed. He had an injury from shrapnel. After he had been home for a while, he was hospitalized for a long time due to a brain tumor that could have been caused by breathing in gases from the bomb. His life has been an example to me and to others. I hope that today, especially, he knows how very much he is loved and admired.
4 comments:
What a lovely tribute, Dana. You make me wish I could know him as well. God bless you and your dear family!
No kidding I was going to type "what a nice tribute to your grandfather" when I noticed that Kathy said the same thing. :0) My grandfather was also in the war. He NEVER talked about it. He got married and 3 weeks later he was shipped off for 3 years!! He got to come home with a purple heart because a grenade hit his hand. My grandmother will talk of those days if asked. She had to move in with another lady. I just can't imagine living with only rations. We truly don't know poverty any more. She told me this one story about how they couldn't get jelly. She used to cook raisins (and something else) until it made kind of a thick paste. I'm truly thankful for all the sacrifices that have been done so that we can live in a free and protected country.
i never knew that about Granddaddy...what an amazing story...
Beautiful tribute to your grandfather Dana! Thanks for sharing! My dad never talked about all he saw or dealt with in Vietnam but as I got older I realized why and just how much it changed and affected him. My mom has always said he came home from the war a different man.
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