Facing history takes courage

I’m one of those die-hard World War II history fanatics that doesn’t let one day go by without searching the television for this subject, recording every WWII episode on the Hero Channel.

I definitely totally get it when reading the Dec. 7 editorial concerning the search for courage to challenge today’s crucible. Once in a while, I view videos of the British Bulldog Winston Churchill and clips of my hero Franklin Delano Roosevelt in those halcyon days the “Greatest Generation” conquered. The president took us with baby steps to victory with a call to courage and patience.

My recent visit (in 2010) to the Pearl Harbor Visitor Center all but took the entire emotion out of me. As a Navy veteran of the Vietnam war (1965-1968) I regret my failure to take that ferry to the battleship Arizona and take that iconic view.

I fearfully remembered my reaction, kneeling and sobbing, when I visited the Vietnam memorial. I knew I would break down. I will search for courage at this juncture in my life.

This story was originally published December 9, 2015 at 6:12 AM with the headline "Facing history takes courage."