December 1943, my folks were living in one room in the First Christian Church in Marfa, Texas, where he was an Army Air Force instructor.
Cessna AT-17, fondly called Bobcat Bombers, along the runway at Marfa.
They couldn’t cook at the church and didn’t have a car. They didn’t even have a table to write letters on–and they wrote plenty of them. (Doris had written to all five brothers on the 22nd and also her folks.)
So Christmas Eve Day Dad built a table, using an empty Drew’s Chocolate box (sent to them for Christmas from his Uncle M.M. Neal of Dexter) for a carpenter’s square.
The next day they walked to the Crews Hotel (not military, owned by a Mr. Crews) where they had Christmas dinner.
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I’ll bet your mom and dad were just happy they could spend Christmas 1943 together.
Yes, and they were expecting me the next spring! Liz, your “Telling Sonny” just arrived today (along with two others). I’m finishing another book, but Sonny is up next!
Based on one of your prior posts, I suspected as much!
https://pacificparatrooper.files.wordpress.com/2018/11/christ24-e1545734174610.jpg
The Drew boxes can do double duty. Glad your Dad was handy that way.
I sure got a kick out of reading that! He must have had a saw and hammer, or a way to borrow them. And some lumber.
Real holiday spirit for your parents, in the middle of wartime. Thanks so much for sharing this story.
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