Grandpa's Book

As the end of 2011 was coming to a close, I set a goal to try and read 3-4 books in the year of 2012.  Within the first 3 months I had accomplished this goal as I was averaging a book a month.  I re-modified my goal to read a book every month for the year 2012.  Ambitious, yet doable.

The end of August came and as I had finished my decorating book I thought about the next book I was going to read.  I looked at my wish list of what I would like to read, and decided that I should probably read the family history books my grandparent's have written over the last several years.  It seemed appropriate, especially as they are still living today.  I knew that if I put these family history books further down my list I would regret not reading them while my grandparents were still alive.  Well, when September came I started to read my Grandpa Sorenson's book Three Years in the Corps and today I finished reading his book (don't worry Grandma, I'm reading your book next!).

Typically, when I finish reading my book for the month I journal about my experience on my personal/private blog.  However, Grandpa's book had too far of an impact on me that I had to make my journal entry public.

My Grandpa decided to write his Three Years in the Corps book because he is one of the living WWII veterans still alive today.  He always figured he would write about his experiences some day, but put it off as he didn't want to "awaken the unpleasant memories" of what happened during the Battle of Iwo Jima (who can blame him).

Grandpa's book covers his 3 year term of service in the Marine Corps, starting with his reaction as a high school student of the infamous event of Pearl Harbor.  He then wrote about his experiences of enrolling in the U.S. military services, first in the Navy and then being recruited into the U.S.M.C. shortly thereafter.  He talks about his experiences of boot camp and what life was like before they went to battle.  He also wrote about his experiences traveling on the large military ships that transported thousands of troops from Hawaii to Iwo Jima.  He writes about the battle that took place on Iwo Jima and the assignments he had.  Grandpa also describes what happened after the battle was over with and his return to Japan to help rebuild that country. He concludes his book with writing about his own return to the United States.

There were several parts of this book that were very moving.  When Grandpa went into detail about his experiences of the Battle of Iwo Jima I felt like I was right there with him.  I could feel his fright and anxiety during the battle.  I could feel his sense of duty to his country. I could feel his loss of loosing his loved ones and comrades.  I could feel the bottomless pit in my stomach as he described the procedures of collecting and burying fallen soldiers, though I imagine he felt worse than I did.  I too felt an immense amount of pride as I read the story about the raising of the flag on Mount Suribachi.  And, I could see the change in Grandpa's perception of the Japanese people: first seeing them as the enemy and then as a "different people who suffered greatly because of the destruction brought to their homeland" due to WWII.

Reading this book made me realize how horrible war is. Grandpa's description of war seems to describe it best -- "war is hell!"  His book made me grateful that I have never had to experience this horror personally in my life. Reading his book has given me a deeper appreciation and respect for the men and women who have fought, and are currently fighting for our country.  They truly are heroes -- every single one of them!

Thank you Grandpa for writing about your service in the Marine Corps.  I imagine this was a difficult task to accomplish, but I am so grateful you wrote about your experiences of WWII.  I knew that you fought in the battle of Iwo Jima, but I had no idea of what you went through.  My appreciation and respect for you, along with the other WWII soldiers who served has increased immensely. Thank you for serving our country so honorably, and for fighting for my freedom.  I will be forever grateful for you.

God Bless the U.S.A.



The pictures of the book cover, boot camp pictures, and Corporal Sorenson's uniform are scanned directly from the book.
Raising of the flag on Iwo Jima picture courtesy of wikipedia.org, Joe Rosenthal/The Associated Press