I just wanted to post something in memory of my dad and uncles, who served in World War II.  I don't know a lot about what they did, because they didn't talk about it.   Dad was sent to the South Pacific and was in Australia, New Guinea, the Philippines, and Japan plus islands in between.   He was transferred into the 32nd (Red Arrow) Infantry Division as a replacement, and I remember him visiting one of the Michigan men after the war.  He was a mechanic so didn't have to be on the front lines, but I'm sure he saw plenty of horrors.   He didn't like the Philippines or New Guinea but he said he wouldn't mind going back to Australia.

I have some letters he sent home, V-Mail I think they were called, little photocopies of the original letters that had to be checked by the military censors.   He couldn't give any details about where he was or what the army was doing, just "I'm somewhere in the South Pacific."   There was a lot of "small talk", and asking how the old gang at home was doing.  He wasn't one to talk about feelings and didn't express much except how bad the food was sometimes, or the weather, or other annoyances.  He'd occasionally ask for some little thing from home, like Pain King lotion which he always "swore by" for aches and pains.   He'd sign the letters "Moose," his nickname.

Uncle Bill was in the Merchant Marine.   He couldn't join the regular armed forces because of health issues.   I just saw a newspaper article calling the Merchant Marine "unsung heroes" of the war, and thought of Uncle Bill.  Even though they weren't "fighting," their work was essential to the war effort.

Uncle Jim was with the army in Europe.  I have the impression he was there before D-Day, but I'm not sure where or when.   He eventually became a medic.   He once declined to tell a  local reporter about his war experiences, because he'd lived through them once and didn't want to re-live them!  

All three of them came home safely, which made our family more fortunate than many.   When I watch documentaries like "The War" or hear veterans on TV talk about what it was like, I think of Dad and the uncles and try to imagine them going through that.  Just everyday guys thrown into that hellish world.  I can't even imagine it, really, it's so far from anything I've experienced in my safe little life.  But if they hadn't "done what had to be done" along with millions of other everyday guys (and gals), my safe little life might not have been possible.

Dad and Uncle Jim are gone now, and I never said "Thank you for your service" to either of them.   They might have been embarrassed by it, but I should have thanked them anyway.

Thanks. Dad.
Thanks, Uncle Jim.
Thanks, Uncle Bill.