A couple shots from old news clips showed up in another flurry of ancient paper. The original captions express the emotions of the times. In this case, it was July of 1944. I can’t tell if it was saved because Dad is one of the young men facing the bulletin board to look for news that would reflect his fate. This is what the young artist looked like at the time:
(Naval Aviation Cadet W. E. Reddig, 1944).
Our 93-year-old Drinking Buddy Admiral Mac Showers had been in the thick of it since his arrival at Pearl harbor in March of 1942. The events of the Pacific conflict later had him movd forward to the forward headquarters of Admiral Chester Nimitz. and as the island-hopping campaign went forward, questions of how many would perish in the invasion of the Home Islands.
That decision would be made with consideration of Mac’s Estimates Section at the forward HQ on Guam. There are two distinctly different views of the decision to use “The Gadgets.” One was the vast expenditure of lives and treasure to go through with the invasion. The other was the relief for both sides that there was a compelling reason to put down the weapons and try to have Peace. The other side of the Bulletin shot was of a thing called “Chow Time.”
It sums up the reality of force generation in time of general war. The sailors and soldiers needed to be fed and uniformly clothed. And a certain percentage of them were allocated to perish, if necessary. There was another small packet of information contained along with the scrap of old Gremlin newsprint. Five Post Cards, printed with this attribution in print so small it served as a dividing line on the side intended for writing: “The Finest American-Made view post cards- the Albertine Co., Brooklyn, N. Y.”
That opened up another mystery. The cards are as pristine as can be expected after being in the world almost seventy years. They are somber in tone, all derived from official images of a Department harnessing civilian resources to train a hoard of Pre-Flight students to destroy an Emperor’s military and civilian infrastructure. I recall Dad mentioning the state of Georgia in a rambling chat about his Navy days, so he may have purchased them there to remember the stages of training.
But they were printed in Brooklyn, which is where he got a start at civilian life. Perhaps he saw them on sale from a storefront on a busy Manhattan street, a cheap legacy item offered by a distributor hoping to reduce old inventory. So, a mystery. Here are some of the Postal Cards from the Albertine Company contained in the little packet:
“Strict military discipline develops officer-like qualities among fledgling aviators of the U.S. Navy Pre-Flight School, Athens, Georgia. Photo shows a battalion formation in front of Wasp barracks. (Should be all capitals: Women’s Auxiliary Service Program.”)
“Muscular agility is emphasized in this hand-over-hand obstacle. Cadets at the U.S. Navy Pre-Flight School in Athens, Georgia, build physical stamina as part of their training for combat flying.”
“With 50-pound packs, cadets of the U.S Navy Pre-Flight School, Athens, Georgia, go on hikes to learn the fundamentals of woodcraft. Future combat pilots are instructed in the essentials of survival in case of accident on land or sea.”
“Future combat pilots at the U.S. Navy Pre-Flight School, Athens, Georgia, get instruction in flag signaling as part of a course in communications.”
So, this little packet of mysteries is now being sent. They are the stories of millions of young men and women who went through a great social change. Most survived, and they carried with them memories of a shared experience dealing with catastrophe. And they were determined to live life to the fullest measure they could when the bad times were done.
They are known now as the “Greatest Generation.” The name may be as appropriate as the one they gave us, and which like theirs lives on with a certain amount of baggage. “Boomers.”
I am pleased that they finally got sent. I think Mom and Dad would appreciate it.
Copyright 2022 Vic Socotra
www.vicsocotra.com