HAVING BEEN THERE

The best words ever heard in 1945 were, "The war is over." The best words heard during the eleven months of combat, and then only rarely, were "mail call." It had finally reached you, it may have been weeks. Letters had been reduced in size by what they called  V-mail. The letter had been robbed of your sweetheart's pink paper and her perfume, or your mothers little drawn stick figures meant to convey nostalgia, but it was from home, exactly  what you needed. I hope, if you had someone out of country in uniform, he or she got a letter, or will very soon. Your sympathy was with those whose names were not called and walked away dejected. If you got a letter you were in tears no matter who sent it---it was from home.