I remember back in about ‘87 I was going to Hawaii for a special two weeks vacation. My dad and mom had been two years prior. My dad, a decorated WWII Master Sgt., had told me how he was particularly warning me about my planned visit to the Arizona memorial. He said to be ready, there were going to be Japanese there who had no sense of this being a memorial to the dead. They would be kidding around taking pictures and laughing with an inappropriate festive level of animation. He said he had had to leave after just a few minutes — his level of rage was about to overcome him.
While at the memorial as I was explaibg what it meant to my 5 year old son as he sat on the bench looking down at the ship's watery grave, he started to cry, and cry hard.
All he could sad say, would say, was that we had to get the men out insisting that we had to get them out, cause their Moms needed them.
Two Navy Wave,s came over to sit with him and Hug him tightly and calm him down.
they continued hugging him all the way back to dock and they were crying to quietly too.
When we dis boarded they were asked why they were crying. When they told the askers, more crying started all around.