Before he was shipped to the front, the Battle of the Bulge, to carry a radio for scouts, in front of the front, he had sent casual pictures of the things around Belgium. Some of the area had been bombed and the train is one of the things that had been put out of commission.
I have a large envelope full of these pictures. Some of them seem to be polaroids and others were some that his buddies processed in the field. He spoke about the guys who liked to develop photos everywhere they would travel.
This last photo is from a place unknown, probably Belgium also. The war had left a lot of personal scars on my Dad's life. He was reliving the horror one more time, the last time that I took him to the emergency room, a few days before he died. He emotionally had to talk about it and we all tended to be deaf afterwhile as he told and retold things. I know it was his way of coping.
I regret that he didn't live long enough to see the new WW 2 memorial in Washington D.C. He would have cried and smiled and he would have been proud.
It's Veteran's Day and we take things way too much for granite.
7 comments:
L.d.
What a loving memory of your Dad this Veterans day. It must have been so hard for them then, I'm so glad he could talk about it. Your right we do take too much for granite
vickie
A lovely tribute to your Dad.
Thank you for sharing.
Sunny
A Wonderful tribute on this Veterans Day Larry. Belgium..and then the Battle of the Bulge..that was one terrible battle. I am glad that he could share some of his feelings with you. The WW2 Veterans are few and far between now a days...they are getting really old. :)
A beautiful tribute to your Dad. And a thank you to all those who serve(d).
Is that your dad in the train? It's a great photo, Larry.
Yes, that is my Dad in the train. I have pictures of them helping kids to fish, and with blown up tanks left from the retaking of Belgium from the German army.
The photos seem carefree, but of course there was much of horror too. All these brave servicemen and women who came back and then were just expected to get on with their lives. No wonder there experiences kept troubling them. Europe is so different now, it's hard to believe that the land was fought over so recently. But if you know where to look there are reminders.
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