Jewells of Thought

Today was a nice day. It was good for our walk this morning and then this afternoon it turned. A front came in and it has been raining since, whether lightly or somewhat harder.

I know it’s not completely the same, but I think about 1944 and what that day was like. It was a rainy mess and they were afraid of the what-if scenarios in the water with a front. Yet they saw a sliver of hope they had a short window of time to get this invasion started or it simply wouldn’t happen.

My Grandpa Leo was still stateside at this time apparently. The first letter that mentions being somewhere in England is his letter of June 30 1944. He wasn’t there for this, immense and intense day but his day was coming soon to travel the sands of Omaha Beach all too soon. Grandpa was a replacement Infantryman that would come later on in July a month after this… the timing is God. Grandpa enlisted after he graduated from Pleasantville High School in 1943. I truly believe Pearl Harbor is when he made his decision. I asked Grandma and she said he had already made his decision before they began dating. He had talked to his parents, but I think the decision was his and he had made it back in 1941.

Perhaps it was similar with my Uncle Norman as well and on the other side of my family with Uncle Horace Grandpa Freddy’s older brother. Goodness I miss these guys and listening to their stories. These men are why I love history in general as well as American and Family History besides World War II History. They are why I am so passionate about remembering them and their stories.

Grandpa Freddy on the left and Uncle Horace on the right.

I am proud to have them in my family lineage and that I got to know them as I did. I only wish I had gotten to know them better and had all the details to their amazing experiences. God gave me this privilege and I am so grateful I was aware enough to appreciate them while I had them around.

If not for our military America could have gone down so many different horrible paths. God’s been so good to this country we need more of this ‘Greatest Generation’ to be recruited once again. We need this special stock of American greatness again, but we need the right leadership at the top to be the strong president the military needs to make it great again.

D-Day is tomorrow. Have you talked to the World War II Veterans in your life and community? It could make a difference for them and for you if you take the first step. It’s an incredible journey to take to get to know a Veteran!