World War II Hero At Lincoln Memorial
Moving photo, tweeted by presidential historian Michael Beschloss.
As I tweeted back to him:
@amyalkon
@BeschlossDC Thanks. Important to be mindful that this weekend isn't just about beer, hotdogs, and a day off.
The photo reminds me of a WWII vet who lived in my home town while I was growing up.
He, too, lost an arm in the war. But, that didn't stop him much. He owned the local school bus company, a company that he started after returning from the war. And, yes, he drove one of the busses with his one arm. Amazing when you consider that the school busses back then were not automatic - everyone of them have a standard transmission that need to be shifted by hand! Hmm, it makes me wonder if the state would even allow a one-armed man to drive a school bus today?
There was also his yard - absolutely immaculate! He did all his own yard work, including raking (this was before leaf blowers were common) and his bushes were always neatly trimmed. Man, you should have seem him trim those things with the old-fashioned manual hedge clippers. Most of us would have struggled using both hands; but, he was so adept at using just one arm to flip the clippers in such a way that they snapped shut with a great force. And he always did it so quickly!
He never spoke about the war; never gave any talk at school or anything like that. I guess it was all just something that he wanted to put behind him while he got back to his regular life.
His life's everyday challenges would melt today's special snowflakes.
charles at May 24, 2015 3:52 PM
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