midlifejourney.com

MIdlifers still remember World War II. Not personally, but through a grandparent, or parent. We hear stories, watch documentaries, listen to the music of the war years… Unless you’ve been there yourself, you can only imagine what it was really like.

My Dad was a WWII veteran who signed up in early February, 1942. He told us the story of how he went down to the recruiting office to check things out. He knew he wanted to sign up and was there to ask a few questions. There were two lines. One green, one red. He chose the green line, and before he knew it, had volunteered for the Army Air Corps. Within hours he was on a bus to Fort Devens and on his way to war. He didn’t even get a chance to say goodbye to his best girl, so eager was the corps to get the troops on their way to the battlefront.

He trained as a techie, repairing plane engines. He was sent to the North Africa front and stayed there for most of the war, fixing bullet riddled planes. “Keep ‘em Flying” was his motto, and somehow, he and his crew did just that. He never spoke of his nitty gritty days and nights in the trenches. There were details he just didn’t want to share. But it changed his life. An easy going guy of 26 became a tough minded man of 31.

War changes everything. For everyone. Remember that.