My family is about one-third resident there since my wife and  son visited a few weeks ago.

Visiting Israel

My son Josh is spending this week in Israel with a minister friend.  While touring they will meet Jessica,  who is a missionary to that area.  Much of my family is  now in the Holy Land.  My wife ad son  devoted more than two weeks there recently.

Jessica and Holy Days

A slight feeling of sadness comes through Jessica's letter Saturday as she describes the walks by huge groups  of visitors in Jerusalem over the Holy Days.  We can count on it  -- her spirit will soon bloom again.

((I have been ill and otherwise occupied  and failed to send the above blog.  Hopefully my health will improve and I can resume myy blog.)

Easter at Okinawa

The sun began to  dawn that quiet Easter April 1,  1945. As  usual we had reported to our stations a few minutes earlier.  Suddenly the peace  was shattered as a cloud of Japanese planes filled the air with bombs, torpedoes and shells.   The sea was filled with shattered planes and sailors.  The ship that    headed our column was hit as was the LST to our port.

We avoided being hit, leaving us to pick up 725 survivors from the APA  Hinsdale 120 and   two LSTs.          
A more complete account is given on the blog of April 1, 2015.

Today is the anniversary of the battle for Okinawa, the largest and last battle of World War II in the Pacific. As longer as I am able I will continue to write about that Easter Sunday, 1945.  Our ship, the USS Pickens, escaped being hit by a kamikaze plane but the ships ahead of us and to our port side were not not as fortunate.  Here is how I remember that day as described on my blog in 2012:

The  Pickens was second in line behind the USS Hinsdale, APA 120, in column of attack transports carrying the Second Marine Division.  Around 5;;50 a.m. a Japanese plane hit the Hinsdale around the water line, exploding several bombs and blowing holes. Another plane headed for us but did not clear the mast of an LST, fell to the deck and exploded.  We put boats in the water and picked up 735  survivors from LST's-884 and 724 and the Hinsdale.

The Battle of Okinawa has been called the largest sea-land-air battle in history.   . Casualties were very high, 72 thousand for the Allies, over 100 thousand for the Japanese, and tens of thousands civilians. Suicide planes took a heavy toll of our ships and sailors and influenced President Truman to drop the atom bomb and avoid invading the homeland.

What Irony!

My intent today was to describe the attack  on the US Navy  ships at Okinawa April l, l945.  Soon, few will be left who remember that morning.


(A terrorist attack by bombs struck Brussels this morning, killing 34 and wounding  187. That  changed my plans to write today about Okinawa. This is a different kind of war, but one that requires leadership.)  Are we getting the leadership we need?

On the way to Okinawa

Seventy-sixyears ago.. Who can remember events of that time?  I expect this will be the last time I will recall serving on the USS Pickens. We left Saipan in a convoy, all thr troop ships on the alert  for Jap suicide attack  planes.  We were prepared with general quarters by dawn  every day.  We were on the way to invade Okinawa.

I stood watch from 12 to 4 and foolishly tried to get  a few minutes of sleep.  I fell into  a coma and missed  the call for general quarters.  I drargged a leg  across a cable but got to the  radio shack.  No one had missed me..  

Get well, Kyle

Best wishes for quick recovery, Kyle. It is your second time to suffer shingles in your eye. Surely, something good will follow.