.....really did in WWII. This is according to My Mother...she told my brother about 15 years ago...and he just related the story to me. My Mom just died on December, 1, 2014. You know how families talk after a death. Until a few days ago...I never really knew. I DID know he (and my Mom) were in The Navy... state-side. He went through "basic" (I guess) at Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. Other than saying he hated The Navy...my Father never had much to say. My Father worked for (was it Northern Pacific.?) The Railroad, and was exempt from the draft. Sometime in very early 1943, he was approached by a branch of the OSS/FBI/Military about joining The Navy and working on a Top Secret project. That turned out to be whatever type of new radar they were making for small craft and airplanes, that allowed The Allies to see something as small as a periscope sticking up out of the ocean.....and all other improvements in electronic spying. He was guaranteed extra pay, V.A. benefits, and a good job in the peace time military, or as a civil servant. This was not JUST My Father, of course. His High School science teacher was approached by The Feds... they were looking for certain types of skills...and My Fathers name was given. Supposedly the search was concentrated in Rural America.....for all the types needed for the coming age of hide-and-seek gadgets. So...a chance to be involved in the coming wave of electronics...radar...surveillance...micro-wave...etc etc. Whatever was coming in the years ahead. At the time he would have been about 21-22. He asked his father in-law for his opinion.....I guess that guy said go for it.! Sounds like a great opportunity...so he did. About 5 weeks into the program, he got a "Dear John" letter from his young wife. They had a very young baby at the time...maybe a year old...My Half Sister. I guess my Dad took it real hard...wanted to save his marriage, and requested a months leave. I guess The Navy said "he could".....but that he would have to leave the electronics program, and have to enlist in "the normal" Navy when he returned from his "hardship". So...for better or worse...that is what he did. I think his marriage was, probably, already over before he even left. I guess we have all made mistakes like "that" as younger men. Not sure he would have made the same decision as a 30 year old. No doubt, his wife had already fallen for another guy. The Navy was a convenient jumping-off point for her. Oh well.....that's life.! He would then meet my Mother and follow a different path through life. WWII played God with many, many lives. I doubt we will ever see its like again.
Dangit I have run through my quota of salutes :angry:! That was a really neat story denny! Thank you for sharing with us. I'm sorry to hear about your mother . Edit: There we go
I've never heard it that way, about god...yes, very excellent point!!!!....how many lives went the 'other' way/or ended/or began? because of the war...whole cities and towns effected....
