we were in hawaii on our honeymoon 6 years ago today. i talked to a local who was an elderly gentleman and lived on the islands when it happened. he said it was like the world was ending.
when 9-11 happened (10 months later) i thought that day must have been much like pearl harbor.
When we were in Hawaii, we talked to many of the vets at Pearl and the Arizona memorial. It was so sad to hear their stories, yet you wanted to hang on to their every word. It is still my most vivid memory of Hawaii, and because of it, I find myself remembering the day each and every year.
FlyBoy and I visited the Arizona memorial several years ago when we caught a hop to Hawaii. It was such an emotional experience. There weren't many vets around that day, but there were many, many Japanese tourists. They took a lot of pictures, but didn't seem affected by it. It angered me to see them laughing and having a good time. It was very much like, just another tourist spot on the map, ya know?
Anyway.
FlyBoy's grandfather (dad's dad) was at Pearl Harbor and survived the attack. He later died in the Batan March (I think). This summer, his dad and wife gave us a bunch of memorabilia, including all the letters his grandfather sent to the states when he was at Pearl Harbor. There's a letter dated Dec 6, 1941. *chills*
If I can find it in the suitcase of stuff they gave us (yes, it's really an old suitcase), I'll post it in his memory today. Thanks for remembering today, sweetie.
If you do find the suitcase, I'd love to see some of the stuff you can share. How very neat to have such a real connection to the past like that, even if it's a sad past.
When I was at Pearl, I was very angered by the fact that so many folks were TALKING during the stated "Twelve Minutes of Silence" on the Arizona memorial. Thankfully I was visiting there before the real age of the cell phone, or I can't imagine how awful it could have been. Myself, I could do nothing but cry. Oh, but what I noticed that day was that it was the ONE spot in Hawaii that didn't seem to be overrun with Japanese - I didn't see a single one at the Harbor during our time there.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2006-12-07 08:05 am (UTC)when 9-11 happened (10 months later) i thought that day must have been much like pearl harbor.
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Date: 2006-12-07 08:11 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-12-07 03:53 pm (UTC)Anyway.
FlyBoy's grandfather (dad's dad) was at Pearl Harbor and survived the attack. He later died in the Batan March (I think). This summer, his dad and wife gave us a bunch of memorabilia, including all the letters his grandfather sent to the states when he was at Pearl Harbor. There's a letter dated Dec 6, 1941. *chills*
If I can find it in the suitcase of stuff they gave us (yes, it's really an old suitcase), I'll post it in his memory today. Thanks for remembering today, sweetie.
no subject
Date: 2006-12-09 01:54 am (UTC)When I was at Pearl, I was very angered by the fact that so many folks were TALKING during the stated "Twelve Minutes of Silence" on the Arizona memorial. Thankfully I was visiting there before the real age of the cell phone, or I can't imagine how awful it could have been. Myself, I could do nothing but cry. Oh, but what I noticed that day was that it was the ONE spot in Hawaii that didn't seem to be overrun with Japanese - I didn't see a single one at the Harbor during our time there.