Middletown H.S. graduation 2012
Dunbar H.S. graduation 2012
Fenwick vs. Felicity
Book Nook provides readers with insights into the world of books. Vick Mickunas takes you into the center of the publishing world with the latest book buzz, book reviews, and exclusive chats with authors..Home > Blogs > Book Nook > Archives > 2009 > December > 07
Monday, December 7, 2009
Remembering Pearl Harbor…
There have been many books written about the sneak attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii that took place on this date in 1941.
I have read some of them. For me none of them fully captured the horror and the heroism of that day.
My dad wasn’t there. He enlisted in the US Marine Corps in 1942 and served in the Second Division at godforsaken places in the Pacific. Islands like Saipan. He never liked to talk about it.
Many years ago I used to eat dinner quite often at a little Italian restaurant in Des Moines. I was a regular. I dined there 3 or 4 times a week for several years. The maitre d’ was a gentleman who lingered in the background most of the time. Quiet, unassuming, his name was Melvin.
After quite a few meals Melvin began to open up to me in conversation. On slow nights he would sit down at my table and we would chat. After quite a few conversations he mentioned that he had been on a ship anchored at Pearl Harbor when the Japanese attacked.
He described what it felt like to be there. His ship was on fire. His crewmates were dying all around him. He spoke very quietly. I’ll never forget the look in his eyes.
As President Franklin Delano Roosevelt stated shortly thereafter in a speech: “it was a day that shall live in infamy.”
A day we can never forget.
Vick Mickunas
Permalink | Comments (5) | Post your comment | Categories: we remember
