Posted on 12/06/2001 6:42:38 AM PST by Uncle George
Dec. 7, 1941 I was 10 years old and having fun running my toy putt-putt boat in the bath tub, you remember those steam boats you put a candle under the boiler and they run around making a loud putt-put noise. My mother came in very excited and told me Japan had bombed us at Pearl Harbor. I ran out in the front yard and many neighbors were outside loudly talking of the attack and we kids were scanning the skys for enemy airplanes because there was talk of Japan invading California and we were in the center of California. Everyone was frightened just as we were September 11, 2001. I have seen the "Sleeping Giant" awakened for the second time and I pray the Country will respond as it did in 1941. We had many less fifth column cells then but they were curtailed quickly then as our President is attempting to control these now. I remember the first soldier killed that was close to our family was my sisters boyfriend who enlisted quickly and died in battle early in the war. I remember her playing a little phonograph record he sent her as he left the U.S. We would all listen to him laughing and telling jokes and the tears would flow as we realized he and thousands more were dieing to protect this Country. Many Americans felt as we did because we took the loss of our loved ones, rationing of everything, around the clock war defence jobs without grumbling or complain. My father worked as a boiler fireman in a sawmill, lumber was a very essential product for defence. I witnessed an awakened giant in 1941 that that drew a Country together into an unbeatable force of all races and creeds that was to be my America for the rest of my life. I pray this Giant of today is the same that awakened on December 7, 1941.
There were newsreels of draftees learning the manual of arms with broom sticks.
Nearly everybody was proud to be an American back then.
I was 4 years old, sitting on the floor in the living room when they announced on the radio that Pearl Harbor had been attacked. I ran into the kitchen and told my mom that Hawaii had been bombed by the Japanese.
My training in world, state, and local affairs, including politics started at the breakfast and dinner table before I was 2. In those days everyone had to be at the table for meals or no one ate and if I didn't participate in the discussion of the days events I heard about it.
Todays world would be a lot better if that were the case today.
I must be getting old...
Ditto--except it was 1944 & Dad was in the Army Air Corps.
Hey, so was my Dad--but he was a co-pilot on B-24's. Got the Distinguished Flying Cross and a Silver Star, in addition to a couple Bronze Stars and a Purple Heart. Was shot down twice in Yugoslavia (he was missing in action when I was born) and got out with help from Tito's boys.
He'd also take $10,000 or so in money they'd pool & fly from Italy to Cairo & load the plane up with booze, in Dad's words, "a helluva lot of booze." Either my Mom or I have a picture of Dad and his crew in front of the Colliseum in Rome. It wasn't until much later that I figured out what those paper bags sitting in front of them were.
My dad was a former navy man and didn't believe me. He said that the Japs might have bombed Manilla but that they never would have been able to bomb Pearl Harbor.......only time in my life I've known my dad to be wrong about anything.
I think September 11th is going to keep my generation from becoming Baby Boomers 2. I wish I couldn't remember where I'd been that day, just as I'm sure many of you wish you didn't have to remember December 7th as anything special.
September 11, that time of the morning I was just about to take my dog for a walk and "something" made me stay in and listen to the radio. As soon as I heard about the first plane, I switched on the TV and saw the second plane hit. The dog had to "hold it" for a long while. When we did go out, I was like a zombie in shock.
g
the other half was in training to outrun like 100,000,000 of my sack mates.
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