Month: August 2018 | Page 2 | Nancy Lou Henderson

Ralph and “Ole” Bondo

Posted by Nancy Lou Henderson in Love Letters | 8 comments

Frank and I had settled into the daily living in Okinawa. Okinawa was such a beautiful island. We had made new friends with couples living in homes around us. Where we lived was designated as off-base military housing. Across the road, in front of our house, was an area that was not a part of off-base military housing but had homes of Okinawan families. Both of us felt that we were so lucky to be living in a house that touched different cultures depending on which way you faced or looked. Frank and I loved this so much. The single soldiers who lived on the base at Torii and worked with...

Ralph’s Love of Leather

Posted by Nancy Lou Henderson in Love Letters | 6 comments

I have told you about finding our sweet dog, Ralph, and how much he loved leather, but I have not shared with you the things he could do to items made of it. Frank and I were given a bible by his Grandmother, who we called “Gram” on Christmas Eve in 1968. The Bible made of white leather had our names engraved in gold on the bottom of the front cover. We dearly loved this Bible. I had carried it with me in my suitcase to Okinawa. We had a small coffee table in our living room, and our Bible laid on this table on top of a doily, which was an ornamental mat we had purchased made...

Typhoon Elsie and the Habu

Posted by Nancy Lou Henderson in Love Letters | 4 comments

In late September of 1969, Typhoon Elsie was in the Pacific Ocean heading towards Okinawa. Living in approved Military Off-Base housing, Frank was released to be at home with me until all threat of it hitting Okinawa had ended. Frank and I were originally from the Gulf Coast of Texas. So we were educated as to what to do and how to prepare for a Hurricane. We decided a Typhoon would not be much different, so we prepared accordingly. What could happen? Enjoy. “Typhoon Elsie” Our home, made of concrete blocks, was very sturdy. Inside the wooden stealy bars that were on all...

Kobe Beef, Pizza Party & Carolers

Posted by Nancy Lou Henderson in Love Letters | 6 comments

It was now October of 1969, and we did not have any more typhoons, habus, or flying doors. The “Stealy Boys” would always be a threat, but Frank and I had learned to live with that. On October 4, 1969, Frank turned twenty years old, and then on October 6, 1969, I also turned twenty years old. The single GIs that were our close friends invited us to go out to dinner with them. They took us to a fancy restaurant in Naha, Okinawa. When we got to the restaurant, and once inside, we were seated on three sides of a large U-shaped bar that had bar stools around it. There was a large...

Mayo Jar, Christmas & Moving

Posted by Nancy Lou Henderson in Love Letters | 4 comments

October of 1969, was passing by quickly for Frank and me in Okinawa. We had met lots of couples who lived around us in off-base housing and had become friends with an Okinawan family that lived across the street from our home. Sometimes while Frank was at work, I would see the Mamasan cleaning her home after her children and the Papasan had left for work. She would drag all of their furniture out into the yard, then sweep and washout the whole house. All of the mats that they slept on were shaken and then hung out on the fence to air. The Mamasan did not speak very much English, and all...