Posts made in September, 2018

A Roller Coaster of Emotions

Posted by in Love Letters | 4 comments

A Roller Coaster of Emotions

Beginning of the Summer of 1970, we had settled into our daily lives in Okinawa. We were enjoying every moment together, but soon things would disrupt that peace, sending us on a roller coaster of emotions. Since Frank was on the day shift, I was surprised when he came home at lunchtime one day.  Visibly upset as he entered the house, he asked me to sit down, which I immediately did. With tears in his eyes, Frank said, “Nancy, I need you to pack a bag because I need you to go home.” Being so in tune with Frank’s heart and soul, I knew that there was something wrong which he...

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Our Hearts Are Broken

Posted by in Love Letters | 6 comments

Our Hearts Are Broken

After nearly two years of living together in Okinawa, late November 1970, Frank and I returned to Van Vleck, Texas. We tried not to think about the short time we had left together, but it was always in the back of our minds. In less than Forty-five days, Frank would fly back to Okinawa for two weeks then transfer to Vietnam. Before leaving Okinawa, Frank and I had sat down and made plans for what we wanted to do when we got home. We wanted to have a place of our own where we could spend time alone together before he left for Vietnam.  It was also crucial for us to have memories of living in...

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Last Letters From Okinawa

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Last Letters From Okinawa

Frank was trying to deal with his loneliness in Okinawa while I was dealing with that same loneliness in Van Vleck.  Handwritten letters were our way of communicating our feelings to each other. After Frank returned to the island for a short time before being sent to Vietnam, I could see in my mind where he was living and working, which gave me so much comfort.  We had lived across the road from Torii Station and had been on the base many times, so I knew it very well. Since we had rented the little white house in Van Vleck once arriving home from Okinawa, Frank could envision me in our...

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Waiting on an Address

Posted by in Vietnam Letters | 6 comments

Waiting on an Address

Frank deployed from Okinawa to Vietnam on January 15, 1971.  I would not receive the last letter he wrote from Okinawa until after he had been deployed for five days. One of the letters I had written to him dated January 11, 1971, was returned to me. Because I wrote him a letter every day,  I  know somewhere out there in “lost letter land” there are still other letters that he never received and which were never returned to me  The problem we faced was that mail took five days or more to arrive in Okinawa from the states. The following letter is the first letter I received from...

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Please, Please Mr. Postman

Posted by in Vietnam Letters | 4 comments

Please, Please Mr. Postman

We were both writing to each other, but I was the only one receiving letters. Once receiving an address, I mailed a large stack of letters to Frank that had been waiting on my nightstand to be sent. It would take days for Frank to get them.   Receiving letters from him while he poured out his love for me made my heart ache because I knew how depressed he was and that he had not gotten my letters of love to him. It is a strange feeling to know your letters would comfort the one person who owns your heart and soul, but you are not able to get them to him fast enough.   I prayed that soon a...

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