Veterans’ Day 2016 
My Dad was a Navy veteran. He enlisted as a young man and was stationed in the Pacific. He, promptly, got terrified on an aircraft carrier during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. When his tour of duty was up, he left the service.
He reenlisted in the Navy when I was about 5 years old. We were very poor and we needed the security and benefits that the Navy provided. So Dad shipped out and we stayed put. My Mom refused to throw us into the transient lifestyle of a military family, always moving, never stable. Needless-to-say, my Dad was an infrequent visitor at home. Yet, he would always get the “Hero’s Welcome,” showing up in his crumbled uniform with luggage filled with exotic gifts.
Finally, he found his niche in submarines. We moved to New London, CT. The family bought a home there and Dad became a more permanent member of the household. He stayed in submarine service till chronic sinus headaches forced him to quit. (There is intense pressure when the boat submerges.) He took a job teaching in the sub school till he retired from the Navy. Then he joined the Merchant Marines and off he would go. Guess the sea was in his blood.
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I found these 1904-6 vintage postcards that I want to post in honor of my Dad.
