I was very, very fortunate and found one from boot camp, one from my ship, and one from Adak.
Turns out the fellow from my ship has quite a collection of memorabilia, including the commissioning pennant, from that old destroyer which has been an artificial reef since 1976. And what do I have? An old windbreaker, and a belt buckle.
But Joe took pity on me. Back in '74, he bought an engraved Zippo lighter from the ship's store and sent it to his dad. When his dad passed away, the lighter was returned to him. And then he found out that I had little remember the ship by, other than pictures, a home movie, and the items mentioned above.
He took pity on me, and sent me this:
I don't know that it will mean much to anyone other than another sailor, but this - a tangible reminder of part of my life that meant so much - made my heart swell.
Joe, you've made this old sailor very, VERY happy.
6 comments:
Merry Christmas Paul.
Thank you, Ed. I hope you & your lovely wife have a wonderful & joyous Christmas, as well.
I have used FB to reconnect to old friends from my high school days in California. One sent me some photos of us back then. Wow speechless, and another sent me a photo from the late 1980 in my AF uniform @CAP. Wow I was skinny then, LOL Thanks for sharing Padre, Merry Christmas
Rev. Paul,
An awesome gift from a friend. A perfect gift to touch your heart!
VERY Cool!
gfa
Rob, I think most of us were thinner in the past. Darn it. But I'm glad you got those photos. I hope your Christmas was a good one.
Sandy, that's exactly right. Thank you. :)
Guffaw, indeed. I still grin every time I see it, in its place of honor on my desk. Thanks, buddy.
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