During my service in the United States Air Force I was lucky enough to avoid being in the action. I almost went to Lebanon, almost to Korea, almost to Grenada, almost to Panama, but never actually had to go to a shooting zone. The closest was when I had my full green dufflebag – a 90lb field load, on my back and was boarding the cargo plane when they called my unit back. Among our unit, there was only one kid around 17 that looked forward to battle. The rest of us were willing to go fight for our country, but preferred to stay home with our families on a stateside base.
I was stationed for most of my career at Hickam Air Force Base Hawaii. I was in a hangar that was covered in pock marks from the machine gun fire of Japanese planes from December 7th. If you see the movies and see a huge aircraft hanger explode, I worked in the one right next to that one. All around me each day were reminders of that fateful day, when other airmen such as I were peacefully going about their duties when they were sneak attacked.
One day there was rain coming in to our ceiling. The hangar had a modern drop ceiling with the ubiquitous white chalk squares. Above that was another ceiling, the original one, forty feet higher and made of wire frame, clay and asbestos. Above that was the inside of the roof, another thirty feet higher. I was sent up rickety ladders to find the source of the leak. What I aslo found was structural damage from the original attack. Huge, multi-ton iron I-beams were dangling, waiting for the moment to fall through the weak plaster below and crush those working beneath. I told my Commander and the whole place was evacuated and the beams secured.
In the process, the construction crews found old parachutes, manuals and other items stored in the attic of the hangar dating to pre-1941. They are now on display at the museum on base. My last impression was when my wife and I visited the Arizona Memorial, which we could see every day from our lanai, or patio of our apartment in Aiea. It was sobering to see the names of the fallen and to look over the edge and see the sunken USS Arizona, which still entombs so many fallen sailors. That day a tour of Japanese was there as well. They were laughing and taking pictures. I felt like beating some sense into them. I would never laugh at the Hiroshima memorial, what was going through their minds?
That day still sticks with me for the outright disrespect for the fallen. Please join with me and take a moment to remember all of those who have fallen to preserve our freedoms and for those who are still alive but would have answered the call had it rang out.
