Aaron is into war documentaries and we have been watching the new series by Ken Burns on PBS called "The War." This series talks about stories from veterans that served in WWII. What their lives were like before and after the war. My grandpa served in the 342nd Armored Field Artillery unit in the Army. He was the leader and gunner on a tank. (There were 5 other men in the tank with him.)Out of hundreds of men in his company, he was one of 12 men chosen to be a gunner. In addition to his duties as a gunner, he would sit in the tank above the driver and give commands to the other guys in the tank by using hand signals. He also would tap the driver on the shoulder so he would know where to go. Here's a picture of him with the tank. He's the one on the right.
Grandpa never spoke of the war, not to my Grandma, not to Mom and her sisters, not to anyone. It's only been in recent years that he's talked about it. I can recall a time when he told me about his group liberating a concentration camp. When he and his group entered, what they saw...he told about how one of the men dropped to the ground and was crying while kissing his dirty boots. I can't even imagine what Grandpa saw, what he experienced, how many of the friends he lost...
If you get a chance to watch "The War", I highly recommend it.
While we're on the subject of war my cousin, Justin, will be leaving tomorrow to do another tour of duty in Iraq. He'll be there for 6 months. Please keep him and the other soldiers in your prayers. Thanks!
This is the day each year that we have to reflect on the millions of Americans who have served our country. Usually on Veterans Day, the kids write papers about what this day means to them and they send drawings and essays to my Grandpa. This will be our 1st Veterans Day without him. I'm missing him, especially today.
