Preparations and Observations

Its been over six weeks and he still has the neck brace and a feeding tube. Along with Alzheimer’s, a diagnosis of Parkinson’s Disease. When we talk he is as lucid as anyone, but sometimes he floats into a time warp and speaks to me as if its 1945, 1955, 1963, or 1968. He is quite cognizant, he knows where he is and what he is saying. But nurses, doctors and even some of his family just don’t understand….he is where his is, in his twilight, on the road.

I’ve served where he fought. I am so proud of that. I was assigned to Okinawa as a Patrol Supervisor of Military Police after serving with the Fleet Marine Force in Korea back in ‘83 and ‘84. I have walked the North End of Okinawa from Red Beach, Kin Kin Cho, from Camp Schwab to Tiger Beach, from Tiger Beach to Ona Ona Son, from White Beach to Naha. Unc (short for Uncle) fought in WWII, he was Duck Driver in the 10th Army. He fought under General Simon Bolivar Buckner, Jr., Marine General Roy Geiger and General Vinegar Joe Stillwell.

“Go, go tell ‘em that its all right….” Unc kept reaching for an item that wasn’t there I didn’t know what it was at first. This Veteran of WWII is laying in a nursing home, but he is talking to me from his house on West End Avenue in Inwood, to him, its 1968. “Boy, tell ‘em to do right, take care of each other, finish doing the work.” Work, what work Unc? “Ba’ (pronounced ‘Bay’, his nickname for my Dad) needs the tools to finish fixin’ the truck and I gotta get more wood from that Ol’ Cracker to finish the potato houses…”.

“The trucks boy, we need to get ammo to the beach, Ba’s gonna’ move’em out, you brothers got work to do!” (Some of my relatives would have placated him about now and called the nurse…not me, I had to understand). ‘Make it plain Unc, I need to get it right.’ His emaciated frame got rigid as he looked me in the eyes, “bad times are coming boy, just like Rob said…its time you got the trucks running and start loading up.”

I held tightly to his bed rail as he continued, this wasn’t incoherent babbling, he knew exactly what he was saying, I needed to know why? ‘Why now Unc, why the ammo and the move now?’ “Boy, can’t you see? Its just like Pop said, when you can’t get gas for the cars you gotta grow your own food…you can’t eat cotton, so you better grow potatoes…rationing kept us from getting to market, so we gotta grow our own!”

‘But why move, why the trucks Unc?’ “Boy, you gotta get the ammo to the beach because that’s where there coming from! Get the bullets to the guns and get the wounded and the dead off the beach…you gotta move’em”. I realized that in the haze of his dementia was the sound of common sense. God showed him the future in the flashes of his yesterdays, I was being warned. Now what to do? ‘Unc I understand, I’ll do all I can, I’ll do what daddy taught me.’

Now an old man who works at the nursing home, same age as Unc, was listening in, his name is Howie. Unc now is bridging several time lines, now its 1970 as well as 1968. “Don’t do what Calvin did. You don’t have to be no Officer to be important or looked up to. I know you got the grades, your sister told me. You don’t have to be big to be bad, empty wagons make a lot of noise, Marines only make noise when they shoot somethin’."


Calvin was my hero, he was everything I wanted to be, a Marine Corps Officer, he didn’t know how to be afraid. I always felt fear and thought something was wrong with me. When I became a Sergeant in the Marine Corps I realized that fear was healthy, acting in fear was ignorant and foolish, challenging fear was the place of a leader. I fought to be up front, just like Calvin. He was killed in Vietnam. I overcame the obstacles and made a place in the ranks of the Marine Corps.

Unc said, “I remember when you were a little boy, I asked you what you wanted to be when you grew up you said ‘a Senator’ and I asked you why and you said, ‘I want to be serious and important.’ Boy make sure you get plenty of seed to plant because important people get hungry too. Bad times are coming and you better know how to do the first things first, you here!” Yes Sir, I here.

The nurse came and said that she had to take Unc back to his room, we were in a little corner of the Dining Room when she came for him, Howie asked me to stay for a minute. Howie asked, “he was in the WAR?” I said, ‘Yes Sir, he fought under Buckner with 10th Army in Okinawa, he drove a DUCK.” Howie said, “I was in the infantry in Okinawa, you know they called that battle the ‘Typhoon of Steel’ lots of good boys didn’t come back. We loved to see the Ducks.”

Howie slightly wobbled as he sat down in his chair he was in his late 80’s, just like Unc. Howie went on about the battle. “We were just kids, but at the end of that battle every one of us were men….we saw good friends die and had no problem killing Japs, that’s what we had to do.” Howie wiped his eyes when he told me about Ernie Pyle, a war correspondent who died on Ie Shima, (also IeJima a small island just a mile northwest of Okinawa).

“Why isn’t he at the VA?” Howie asked. “This facility is OK, but what’s out at Northport is the best and that’s what your Uncle deserves” I quickly retorted, “you all do…how much is to little to give for you men who saved the world.” “Thanks kid, but you being one of us knows that we won’t get nothing unless someone fights for it…you and me still have to fight.” ‘Yes Sir, we do.' Lets see if the nurses have your Uncle tucked in good…”

“Boy, where is that bag of bagels, I just put it down….”. Unc drove a bagel delivery truck for a man who owned bagel stores in Far Rockaway, Cedarhurst and Inwood back in the 60’s and 70’s. He got steady work from a group of lawyers in Cedarhurst and Far Rockaway back in the 70’s also, one of them became a Judge and hired Unc full time. He always had bagels to bring to work at the law office (he was the janitor) or take home. He wanted to give me some bagels to take with me when I left. The bag was in 1968…. his intent is for always.

‘Don’t worry about it Unc, I understand, I’ll get by later in the week, I got your Legion Cover (American Legion Hat). I want you to have it for Memorial Day.’ “When you see my brothers, tell them I’m here, I know they get busy, let ‘em know I’m alright…you here boy. You Here?” ‘Yes Sir, I here, I’ll pass it on. (All his brothers have passed away…including my Daddy)’.

“Boy, make sure you pray, get right with God, get those you know right with Jesus. The time is on us and we need to be right! Do you here?” ‘Yes Sir, I here.’ Howie handed me a leaflet, I stuck it in my pocket and thanked him. When I left the nursing home I drove straight to my house. I sat down and opened both bottles of wine and started playing old time gospel music. I played a song that my Daddy liked by Sam Cooke called ‘The Last Mile of the Way.’

When I got home I thought about Memorial Day Weekend, then I read the leaflet Howie gave me. This is what it said:

“It is the VETERAN, not the preacher, who has given us freedom of religion.

It is the VETERAN, not the reporter, who has given us freedom of the press.

It is the VETERAN , not the poet, who has given us freedom of speech.

It is the VETERAN, not the campus organizer, who has given us freedom to assemble.

It is the VETERAN, not the lawyer, who has given us the right to a fair trial.

It is the VETERAN, not the politician, Who has given us the right to vote.

It is the VETERAN who salutes the Flag,

It is the Veteran who serves under the Flag,

ETERNAL REST GRANT THEM O LORD, AND LET PERPETUAL LIGHT SHINE UPON THEM.

Between barbecue, parties, shopping and drinking remember what Memorial Day is for. If you know a fallen Veteran, find a way to honor him or her for the rest of this month.



When I left the nursing home, I couldn't help notice the stars and stripes flapping in the wind.

Real Heroes will be draped in it.

RJ