An
old shoebox shoved
to
the back of the top shelf
of
the clothes closet,
forgotten,
recalling
another
time, a ship,
the
exotica of Manila,
the
danger of Tokyo:
a
sewing kit of flaking leather
a
ration card, partially unused
a
photographic booklet
of Shanghai
a
pocket New Testament
King James Version
a
stout cloth belt still usable
a
Christmas card dated 1945
a
receipt for the purchase of a lot
back home signed
by someone unrecognized
a
brass Chinese wedding cup
a
warship’s newsletter
discharge
papers
discharge
papers
Photograph: USS Repulse, World War II
4 comments:
Was that your dad or some other relative?
A treasure trove of memories . . . Beautiful, Glynn!
Jerry - that was my dad - although that wasn't his ship in the photo.
Always so interesting what we save. Your line "discharge papers" carries so much meaning.
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