From: Ron Gillen (gillen@nconnect.net)
Date: Fri Nov 23 2001 - 09:31:25 PST
November 23, 2001 Bravery at Home By JEAN S. ARBEITER LEONIA, N.J. -- President Bush says veterans should talk to schoolchildren about their experiences during World War II. A fine idea, but I think that those of us who were children on the home front during that war have something to tell, too. All my childhood feelings resurfaced in a heartbeat after Sept. 11. I remembered the fierce patriotism, the way people cared about one another, and the anxiety. The fears of children didn't get the same attention then. I can't remember any adults offering reassurances that we were secure. Instead, they told us the truth. Even the smallest children knew that bombs could make you dead. The bombs happened because of a man named Hitler who wanted to take over the world. His soldiers marched in lockstep, striking the pavement with their tall boots, and if we didn't stop them, their boots would march right up to our front doors. That was why we had to have air-raid drills where we turned off the lights and pulled down the shades. If any real bombing happened, we would be prepared. In 1942, when I was in kindergarten, it was far from certain that the democracies would triumph. We could see the concern in the adults' faces, the crowds gathered around car radios — listening, praying — as we walked home from school. Eventually, we were issued tags, with our names and birth dates, that we had to wear all the time, just the way the soldiers did, so we could be identified if — if. Reassurance came in Franklin Delano Roosevelt's voice, in the resolve of the adults, in their vision of a better world. But the most reassuring thing was that everyone had a part to play. We were needed, no matter what our size. Children separated the silver foil in cigarette packs from its paper backing, saved the foil, and when they got enough, rolled it into balls. We saved newspapers, too, and the fat left over from cooking. Somehow, we knew, these things would be reused. Even little children were expected to understand the need for sacrifice. In school we learned a song about rationing: "I like sugar and things that are sweet, and here in this country there's plenty to eat, but Uncle Sam says, "Take care, take care, don't waste any food that we all must share." Another song went "Good morning, Mr. Jordan, I'm your junior air-raid warden." Today, the poignant home-front bravery in those years resonates. Our security, as children, lay in that bravery. Now there is a new generation that has to be brave. I know from my experience that children can be and want to be, because their sense of security lies in being part of the effort that they see around them. Jean S. Arbeiter is the co-author of several books on medical issues. ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~--> Universal Inkjet Refill Kit $29.95 Refill any ink cartridge for less! Includes black and color ink. http://us.click.yahoo.com/bAmslD/MkNDAA/ySSFAA/r1FolB/TM ---------------------------------------------------------------------~-> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: timewitnesses-unsubscribe@egroups.com Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/