WW2 Chapter 60 - Gift Packages (and Water Damage)



Water damaged letter, January 14

1/14/45

Dear Mother and Dad,

    Have been rather busy since I last wrote to you. MacArthur made a statement to the effect that resistance on Leyte ceased at Christmas – but then he’s in Australia and would hardly know what we’re doing.

    We received more packages with all sorts of home-made cookies, boxes of chocolates, nuts, cakes, candy bars – most everything. However, some people, when they select their gifts, forget that we’re a line company, and have no use for much else than food. We move into an area at night – sometimes receive mail and packages – then probably take off the next morning – leaving these things behind. We carry all our possessions – so they are limited to just necessities. We wear the same clothes day after day – week after week; perhaps someone has an extra pair of wool socks (which are probably wet anyway) – but that’s all.
~~~~
Much love,

Franklin

This letter from January 14 was the first that Franklin was able to write home to his family in two weeks, due to being occupied in battle and in loading cargo ships.

Datebook of Franklin's Father, January 1945
(click to enlarge)

Some of the letters from this period were unfortunately damaged by water and mold, apparently during subsequent storage in his parents' basement, and were therefore partially or entirely unreadable. Ironically it seems that rain and water continued to play a major role in this story.