remembering my dad

I've gone through most of the day today and not even thought about the fact that it is Veteran's Day.

It got me to thinking about my dad, though. I've written a couple of blogs about him. Dad and the Old Folks and also one about how he immigrated to America at age sixteen.

Today, I remember, Dad the army man. After he had been in America for a few years, he wanted to join the United States Army. He was not a US citizen yet when he joined, but the paperwork must have been started, because his citizenship was finalized while he was stationed in the army in Korea. 

Growing up, I knew that dad served in the army as a young man. He told few stories and as a young person I didn't really think it was all that important to ask. Now that he has been gone almost 23 years, I wish I would have asked more. All I really knew was that he drove a "cat" in Korea and made roads for heavy duty equipment to pass on. He was also stationed in Japan for awhile. I remember him talking about the little Japanese children he would see and the word they used for "bathroom". Kind of a grunting noise and then "benjo". I can still see my dad telling me that and then having a good laugh about it. 

With my dad passing away in 1989, I don't have him around anymore to ask him to tell more army stories. If he were still here, I would want to know what prompted him to want to join the United States army. His native country was Sweden, and yet he immigrated here and joined our army. That is something I'm proud of my dad for. For wanting to serve a country that was newly adopted as his own. 

Thanks, Dad. Thanks for serving your country. Thanks also for being an awesome dad. I love and miss you.