One from the Greatest Generation

My friend JulieBug at Another Chance Ranch conjured up a wonderful idea called Thankful Thursday. I'm not sure what the 'rules' are. Does it matter?  My best bet is that we are supposed to post about what we are thankful for. This is my first go-round with Thankful Thursday. I can think of many things I'm thankful for...my health, family, and friends to begin with.

This particular post was developing in my head before I knew about Thankful Thursday. In fact, the post just happened before my very eyes. There are many posts I set out to create, but not this one. It just  occurred.

theHansMan (prounounced thuhHahnzMahn) and I took an impromptu, overnight trip to here...(Any ideas where this is ?)

Just one of those times where we walked out the door and jumped in the car with the dogs. I was sitting inside here, waiting for breakfast while theHansMan discussed the importance of cathodically protecting buried propane tanks with the maintenance guy for this place. Their conversation took them out the door leaving me alone with my coffee cup and my thoughts.

As I sipped my coffee, I watched him walk through the door.  He was a local for sure because he knew which door was open and which way to turn the massive handle to gain entrance. Everyone else struggled trying to open it.  I watched him take his place at the bar and order his "usual" breakfast, I knew he was a walking history book.  After several minutes of listening to him cajole with the waitress, it was too much for me to just to sit at that table by myself.

I introduced myself and ask if I could join him. His blue eyes glittered and he smiled all over.

"Of course, young lady, belly up to the bar with me. I'm having my "usual breakfast." I have two of these every morning, right here. His hair was still wet from his morning shower and slicked back very neatly. A fresh scent of Ivory soap floated in the air.

I noticed the bolo tie made of braided leather with sterling silver aglets. The decorative piece was the design of a scorpion. A deadly scorpion. Two of which he had caught in the Nevada desert. He was very proud of the tie he had designed and made himself.

His leather jacket lined with sherpa wool was well worn and shiny at the elbows but immaculately clean. He was quick to point out where he had bought it. "It only takes 10 hours to drive there and they let me have a very nice room for $28.00."

My coffee was beginning to taste like muddy water as I watched him sip on his ice-cold breakfast. I asked the waitress to bring me what he was having. When she sat the pilsner glass in front of me with foam dripping over the top, he giggled and asked, "You having one, too, young lady?"

At this point he noticed my camera and asked, "What's your story, where are you from, what are you doing 'roun these parts, and what are you taking pictures of?"

I told him I was from Grand Junction, my husband and I just drove down for a 24-hour stay and explained that I always took my camera with me just in case I needed to take a picture of something.

Then I asked him, "What's your story?"

"Well, they got me right out of high school. I did my basic training, went on to be a paratrooper, and spent a lot of time in and around Japan." 

He asked me if Johnson Island in the South Pacific 'rang a bell.'  That he had spend some time there.

I looked at him and saw the face of a young boy, a teenager who missed the days of being carefree and the nights of being adventuresome. Instead he saw fighting and death because he answered a call that succeeded in winnning a war that saved the world.

He told me he learned to speak Japanese almost fluently and then proceeded to rattle off a string of words that were only sounds. Sounds foreign to my ears. He grinned knowing I didn't have a clue what he had just said, so I asked him.

He said he had just asked, "Where the hell am I?" That in order to survive, once you jumped out of a perfectly good plane, it was important to know where you were. So, he would hide undercover until nightfall, then find the house of an older couple, who most generally would answer his question.

The bar-keep entered the scene and the conversation turned to the present. Fishing became the topic. Catfish to be specific. Scarface to be even more specific. Scarface is an 11-pound catfish that seems to elude his hook most of the time, but has on a couple of occasions 'broke my tackle.'

The bar-keep asked him where he fished.

"On the river," were his not-so-specific directions.

When asked what will you do with Scarface when you catch him, he replied, "Let 'em go, of course. Any fish that has lived that long and grown that big deserves to be free and not eaten."

I asked why he named the fish Scarface and he explained that when the hook pops out of his mouth and hits you in the face, it leaves a scar.

Below, he is demonstrating the technique he will use this spring to catch Scarface with perch bait.

theHansMan entered on the scene at about this time and was, of course, mesmerized with the stories. Stories about living in Alaska three times. Stories about living in Saudi Arabia for a eighteen months.  Stories about living in Mexico for seven years. Stories about living in Arizona. Stories about working in Nevada. (Those stories were classified and his audience wasn't privy to them.) Stories about catching poisionous scorpions. Stories about killing a bear when he was 16 and regretting it ever-since. Stories about being a medical administrator, a bookkeeper, a surveyor, a uranuim miner. 

Stories about his pet boxer, Cindy, who ran away from home and was gone for several weeks. He could see her from the plane as they flew over the desolate area below but, of course, they couldn't land anywhere to pick her up. She was running with a pack of coyotes.  When Cindy finally came home, she was covered in porcupine needles which he pulled out one-by-one. He said she stayed very still to let him remove the quills which had caused numerous infected sores on her face and neck. Several weeks later she produced a litter of half boxer-half coyote puppies.

theHansMan was proud to shake the hand of this real-life hero.

Bill will be eighty years old next month.

I asked him a not so original question: "What is your recipe for a good life and being happy at seventy-nine years old?"

Without hesitation Bill grinned, "Be a vagabond, don't drink whiskey, and have two beers every morning for breakfast."

He gave me permission to take his picture, use his name, and tell this story. I regret that I can't re-tell it the way he told it. And if I've left something out or not explained something exactly right, I apologize. But I think you get the gist of the idea here.

As I drained the last sip of my breakfast out of the glass, he asked, "Young lady, you going to be back 'roun the parts again?"

I assured him that I would  if I could go fishing with him.

Oh, how his face lit up and that impish-like grin spread all over his face.

"It's a deal. We'll go get 'old Scarface, you and me. On one condition."

"What's that, Bill?"

"That you leave Hans at home."

"If we are to heed the past to prepare for the future, we should listen to these quiet voices of a generation that speaks to us of duty and honor, sacrifice and accomplishment. I hope more of their stories will be preserved and cherished as reminders of all that we owe them and all that we can learn from them."   
----Tom Brokaw

I hope that in some small way I have given tribute to this man who helped to give us the kind of lives we have today. For him, and all those who have served and are serving our country, I am thankful.

****************************************************************************

Message from the Emergency Swampcast System:  UPDATE...

1) We were HERE.

2) Bill will celebrate his 80th birthday on February 25.  If you have a message for him, please send it to swampwitch06atgmaildot com
I will print them and mail them to him.
OR
E-mail me at the above address if you would like to send a card. I'll give you my USPS address and mail the cards to him.  If possible, I will hand deliver them to him.

Comments

[Nekked Lizard Lady]

They are truly an amazing generation. Thank you! for taking the time to tell his story. I'm sure he will not forget you, and may we never forget him.

[Equoni]

Incredible post Swampy! You should write a book...Travels with Swampy. You meet the most interesting people. Thank you for taking the time to introduce us to him. I was just mesmerized! I wish I could have been there with you! What a morning! Makes me want to go out on the road tomorrow just to meet the people!

[his-self]

Great story! He is truly a member of the Greatest Generation. Where would we be without these fabulous people?

I hope you go fishing with him!

[Cynthia]

WONDERFUL

[Sandy]

I am thankful for the gift that God gave you and that you are smart enough to use. What a wonderful storyteller you are, Swampy, with words and with photos. Sometimes, you need both.

Thank you.

[Alison]

Wow Swampy, you brought tears to my eyes and have put everything into perspective. I love Bill and want to meet him!!! This is an awesome post..the best I have ever read!! Thank you so much!

[Cindy Z]

What a wonderful story! Great pictures too, you really captured him!

[Junebug]

Wow Swampy! That sounded like something that should be on a documentary for tv. Good stuff!

[Pamela]

Beautiful story! You know how I love stuff like this.

I hope you do go back and go fishing with him.
But, take Hansman. ha ha.

[nessa]

What a great story. Thanks for sharing it with us.

People do not ask the elderly about their lives enough. We forget that they were young once and living during a different time and have fantastic adventures to tell.

[Karisma]

Great post Swampy! This story gave me lots of things to think about.

First: I thought you were in the middle east somewhere until I started to READ the words.

Then I was amazed by his ring. Very cool.

Then I was blown away by his story. WOW

Then the story about his dog put me in mind of an email I received not long ago. A picture of a dog in this very predicament.

Now Im exhausted, too much thinking.

Thanks

[hulagirlatheart]

Great story. OH, how I wish I had listened more to my grandpa's WWII stories before he died.

[chrisb]

What an amazing life. That was so interesting to read and I'm sure he enjoyed recalling everything~he has a wonderful sense of humour and your tribute is perfect.

[min]

He's single? Did you give him my number? I think I can handle cooking beer for breakfast.

[Jen(aside)]

That was a wonderful story. Thank you, sincerely, for sharing it.

[Simply Jenn]

You Swampy are the awesomest of the awesome. What a great story you told and I love your inhibition that allows you to learn great stories. You rock, sister, you rock!

[Dawn]

Wow, what an awesome post. I couldn't stop reading and it really touches a cord. So often we don't listen to the heros who broke the ground before us. They have so much to teach us of our past. Thank you for sharing such an awesome story of Bill.

[Brian]

I echo the book idea. You're already traveling so why not share the people you meet? I think you'd do a great job. Thanks for talking with strangers and bringing them to our attention.

[Beckie]

What a wonderful story!

Thanks for your comment.

[Carrums]

Swampy, you have me in tears thinking about my old neighbor, John. He was a WWII vet, got shot up at Omaha Beach, sewn back up and sent back for a second tour. He was a wonderful man and I dearly miss him and his wife, Dotty. He actually wrote a book about his tours, but it probably couldn't ever be published b/c of the language and lack of "cultural tack." lol! I love it though, gives me good memories of him.

What a great trip that turned out to be!!! You better go back and fish with him -- that's when the really good stories come out!!!!

[Wicked Witch]

You're best post yet! Love WW

[Melissa in NZ]

What a precious person! And what a priviledge for you to have met him.

[katy]

what a wonderful gentleman so full of character, top post Swampy x

[nancypants]

Beautifully written Swampy. Truly beautiful.

[Tera]

What a terrific story. Aren't you glad you had the courage to take a seat and become his friend? Wow, the whole encounter just came alive before my eyes. I'm glad he gave you the okay to post about him and his life. It's really beautiful. Definitely reason to give thanks.

[Julie]

Okay, I left this comment and it didn't show up, then I found it on your previous post. Geez Louise!

I had to ask a question before I read the rest of your post...Were you at The Fort? If so, I love that place. Now I am off to finish reading your post.

[Julie]

Now I have read probably the best post I have read in ages! I hope you do go fishing with him, and I hope you catch Scarface so you can have the camera ready to catch the excitement on his face.

I wish I were brave enough to just walk up and talk to someone like that. Thank you for doing that, and then sharing it with us.

[Sirdar]

What an awesome story!! Sometimes if a person takes the time to talk to some of these "old timers" you will learn something that you just don't appreciate because they tell of a time when things were different. Thanks for sharing.

[bermudabluez]

Thanks so much for sharing this experience with us!! Just think how different your life would have been had you not asked if you could sit and chat? A wonderful hero. Now....were you in Taos?

[Kila]

What a fabulous post! Thank you for sharing him with us.

[claudia]

That was awesome. You know you totally made his day, right?

[tiger lamb girl]

Very nice post, Swampy!!

[Willowtree]

Splendid post. And those first two photos should be blown up and hung on a wall.

[Willowtree]

Ha ha ha! I just realised that it must have taken you ages to get all those letters in the right order!!

[Cynthia]

I have tagged you. Come visit my blog to find the details.

[Megan]

Wow, amazing story..and amazing pictures. You're very talented. Sorry about my background color and text. I'm in the process of trying to change it, but apparently "SAVE" doesn't really mean "SAVE"!!! Hmmm...I'll figure it out.

[susan]

Wow. What an amazing guy. Thanks for sharing him with us all.

[Joy T.]

Wow what a great post! This should go in a magazine somewhere for everyone to read. I hope you DO go back and meet Bill again and tell him how many fans he now has because of your beautifully written post. If you do, make sure and say from a 'young' lady from Canada for me :o)

[RWA]

I am so happy that you took the time to visit with this man - and to share his incredible story.

There are so many people like him out there, who pass us by each and every day - or sit at a table (or bar) not far away in a restaurant or tavern.

Well done, Swampy.

[Swampspawn]

Wow Mom!! This one really touched me!! You have some amazing pics of him!! I hope you get to go back and fish with him!!

[Donna W]

Amazing pictures and story of an amazing man. Thanks!

[Lisa's Chaos]

Definitely a perfect post!!

[Karmyn R]

How did I miss this story the first time around? Wow - what a great post. Now I see why my mom nominated it for Perfect.

My FIL just turned 88 and he has similar stories. We've started recording him, but we need to hear more.

[Amanda]

Wow!! My mom sent me here, and I am glad she did. These are my FAVORITE kinds of stories! I would have liked to listen to him myself. Thanks for sharing!