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World War Reminisces
Mar. 24th, 2003 07:36 pmI stopped by to see my Dad on Sunday, and mentioned that I was making some beer.
He told me that my Grandfather, as a soldier in World War 1, was making beer on the front lines in France. Something went wrong, and the beer exploded right before an inspection. A high ranking officer caught them with 4 inches of beer in the bottom of their trench.
My Dad served in WW2, and was wounded right before the Battle of the Bulge. He served in the 80th Division, but remembers seeing the 3rd Division during the war (this is the division that is now pushing through Iraq, toward Baghdad).
After he got out of the hospital, the war was over, but he had to serve as a military policemen in post-war Europe. At first, he had to "guard" some German POW's that were staffing a French Chateau that was being used to house American officers. The German POW's essentially ran a hotel, and guarding them was sort of a joke.
When the POW's heard he was being transfered to Germany, they asked him to take a bundle of letters with him to deliver. Because the war was over, by Dad didn't see any harm in doing so, even though it was against regulations.
A week later, he was wandering alone, at night, through the old part of Munich, searching for a bar where he was to deliver these letters. This part of Munich was the cradle of Nazi Germany, and in 1945, there was still risk to a lone American soldier. He finally found the bar; it was crowded with Germans singing and laughing. When he entered, in uniform, everything fell silent. The POW's had given him a man's name, so he asked for that man, and suggested that they talk privately. They went into a backroom, and my Dad handed over the letters. When they both returned to the public room, the man announced something to the crowd in German, and everyone gave my Dad a round of applause as he was leaving.
This is an interesting story, but it reminds us that we are all human beings. The Iraqi and American soldiers that are dying today, have mothers and wives that love them. War is always a tragedy.
He told me that my Grandfather, as a soldier in World War 1, was making beer on the front lines in France. Something went wrong, and the beer exploded right before an inspection. A high ranking officer caught them with 4 inches of beer in the bottom of their trench.
My Dad served in WW2, and was wounded right before the Battle of the Bulge. He served in the 80th Division, but remembers seeing the 3rd Division during the war (this is the division that is now pushing through Iraq, toward Baghdad).
After he got out of the hospital, the war was over, but he had to serve as a military policemen in post-war Europe. At first, he had to "guard" some German POW's that were staffing a French Chateau that was being used to house American officers. The German POW's essentially ran a hotel, and guarding them was sort of a joke.
When the POW's heard he was being transfered to Germany, they asked him to take a bundle of letters with him to deliver. Because the war was over, by Dad didn't see any harm in doing so, even though it was against regulations.
A week later, he was wandering alone, at night, through the old part of Munich, searching for a bar where he was to deliver these letters. This part of Munich was the cradle of Nazi Germany, and in 1945, there was still risk to a lone American soldier. He finally found the bar; it was crowded with Germans singing and laughing. When he entered, in uniform, everything fell silent. The POW's had given him a man's name, so he asked for that man, and suggested that they talk privately. They went into a backroom, and my Dad handed over the letters. When they both returned to the public room, the man announced something to the crowd in German, and everyone gave my Dad a round of applause as he was leaving.
This is an interesting story, but it reminds us that we are all human beings. The Iraqi and American soldiers that are dying today, have mothers and wives that love them. War is always a tragedy.
