December 21, 2007
"The more things change the more they remain the same," --an old adage.
Some of the best treasures of Christmas are those found while searching for something else, such as photographs and keepsakes carefully saved in old boxes or dresser drawers.
My sister found such a treasure when she was hunting for our parents' slides from the 1950's. In a forgotten dresser, she found an original letter from our Uncle Richard written in perfect penmanship and mailed to his parents on Nov. 24, 1944.
Our Uncle Richard was stationed in North Africa and Italy during World War II, but we are not sure where he was when he wrote the letter because the return address said only 56 th Evac Hospital.
I suspect that this letter sent decades ago from a soldier hungry for news from home is not much different from those sent today by other soldiers serving around the globe.
In World War II, however, soldiers had to rely on letters that took weeks to arrive. They had no internet. No cell phones. No email. Not much news.
Take a peek at my uncle's letter from 1944, and you will probably realize as I do that no matter how much things change, nothing really changes at all.
"Dear Folks: Thanksgiving Day is now a thing of the past. I guess everyone is getting ready for Christmas now. We had a nice dinner yesterday; it was as nice as any we had back in The States. Some of the things on the menu were roasted turkey, FRESH mashed potatoes, gravy, dressing, peas, pumpkin pies, mincemeat pies, cake, and coffee. The cook went to a lot of work to fix a meal like this, and I know everyone really appreciated it. They also had our mess hall tent decorated, and it seemed a little like home."
"Some of the boys are receiving mail from home. I haven't been receiving much mail lately but it may get here yet. There have been quite a few packages coming in lately, so I may get a package before long. I received a letter from Esther and one from Ruth, but I have been wondering one thing that no one seems to know over here."
"How did the Missouri-Kansas football game come out? I bet two boys from Kansas that they would get beat. As of now, I haven't heard any further news on the game. We did hear that Missouri was ahead at the half, but we never heard the final score."
I was dumbfounded to read that in his letter because in 1944 just like today, some things never really change at all.
A soldier loving turkey and all the trimmings, pie, Christmas packages from home, and excitement over the MU-KU football game!
Who would have guessed?
Then, Uncle Richard wished everyone a Merry Christmas and said to say hello from a soldier who is happy to be serving his country and protecting his homeland.
Indeed, not much changes after all, and that could be a very good thing.
