|
August 1, 1945:
Got a letter from Bill (Fidler) Hetzlein. He is only thirty miles
from me. I hope we can visit soon. It was only fourteen months
ago in May of 1945 that "Fid" and Tom Rubritz saw me
off at the train depot in Johnstown. Good ol' Tom. It was a year
on July 27th that Tom was killed near St. Lo. May he rest in
peace.
NOTE: As I transfer this from my diary
to the printed word, Bill too is no longer with us. He died on
November 11, 1986. Two of my boyhood friends.
August 8, 1945:
Paul Lubke just got a letter from his girlfriend accusing him
of fraternizing. He is furious. (As I mentioned earlier, the
press is giving the home front the idea that this is prevalent.)
He sat down and wrote his girlfriend a scorching letter. Paul
is our first sergeant and a very good friend of mine. I have
been in Paul's section ever since I came to the Company. We have
gone through rough times together. Paul is one of the remaining
six original men still left here. I guess because he is the first
sergeant, Headquarters feels he is needed to run the Company
in its transition. I have been keeping close to Paul because
his morale is very low. Paul, like me, doesn't want anything
to do with the Germans. I get quite a kick out of Paul. We will
be walking down the street and a German will bid him the time
of day and his reply is "Go to Hell".
These days are rather unusual. All the guys
who left us went to the 5th and 6th Armored Divisions and the
703rd Tank Destroyer Battalion. They are all in the immediate
vicinity and get bored waiting for the processing and transportation
to get to the States. Since they have nothing to do they are
constantly coming back to visit what few remaining buddies there
are. Every weekend it is like a family reunion.
I have been thinking of Paul and Bob, since
letters from home say they were on leave recently, and now Paul
has gone to California to board ship, and Bob is now stationed
at Camp Meade.
The biggest topic of conversation today is
the dropping of the Atomic Bomb on Japan. From initial reports,
it must be devastating. I hope this will shorten the war. I have
a premonition that I will never see that part of the world. Let's
pray that the war will soon be over.
Guess I won't be enjoying these luxuries here
in Gross Gerau much longer. We are slated to move in a few more
days. Reports have it that our billets won't be as nice as these.
Here we have enjoyed all modern facilities such as bath, light,
heat, nice beds, inside toilets (which is rare around here),
truly a nice big house. We are moving to Schwabish Hall near
Stuttgart.
Had a letter from brother John. I can see
my dad just as concerned and anxious about John on Okinawa as
he was anxious about me when I was in the thick of things. I
often wonder how we ever went through some of the stuff. If I
had to live the life over again, it would be very hard. But I'm
sure I could face it again.
Still August 8, 1945:
NEWS FLASH!!!
It is 10:00 p.m. and the news over the radio
is that Russia has just declared war on Japan. This sounds great.
It no doubt will mean a lot to hastening the end of the war in
the Pacific.
|