Write a Letter To Your Mom!
Like many of you, my wife and I often find ourselves in the familiar situation of our children not responding to our texts or voicemails. This, undoubtedly, triggers a wave of worry. It’s a shared experience, isn’t it?
The worry that comes with uncommunicative children is not a new phenomenon. It’s a concern that has been part of the parental experience since the dawn of time. This is especially true when our children are in harm’s way, such as in a war zone.
Recently, I was thumbing through the book USS Franklin “CV-13) Original Documents 1943-1946, looking for a particular letter from Lt. Commander Joseph T. O’Callahan, the ship’s Catholic priest on its second tour. The book contains unit rosters, brief histories, deck logs, other correspondence, and letters.
Among the letters, I found three, two from the ship’s first captain, James M. Shoemaker, replying to worried mothers who had not heard from their sons. I’m sure there were more than just three worried mothers. Instead, the three letters represent many more the captains and chaplains wrote. Reading between the lines, I’ll bet there was a firm message from the captain to those mothers’ sons via the chaplains to write their families more often.
Some things never change!
Did you arrive here via a search engine? I am the author of the forthcoming book Heroes By The Hundreds: The Story of the USS Franklin (CV-13). In addition to writing about the bravery of the crews that saved her, I will discuss the lessons we can learn in leadership and decision-making and the changes the US Navy made because of those lessons.
Feel free to follow me on Facebook. There, I am M. Glenn Ross, Author. I also write a monthly newsletter, Glenn’s Action Report, about subjects I find interesting in my research. You can sign up for it below. Feel free to leave a comment or ask a question. Thanks for reading.
-Glenn
