Diary+Entry+-+Feb.+19+1945


 * February 19th 1945**

Finally I got time to write my diary entry. For past 2 years or so, I was busily fighting the Japanese. I have gone through a lot, and I am mentally and physically tired and sick of this whole thing. I have seen many abominable incidences, and I have even saw a Japanese guy committing suicide by stabbing himself on his stomach. I saw all this with my own eyes... We have hopped islands after islands, and every island we went, we met ambush and there were small and big surprises. Sometimes we saw a whole village dead; some beat each other up to death, others, instantly killed each other by using grenades and other explosives. In one of the islands, which I have forgotten the name, I saw a mom dead with a bat on her hand, and in front of her laid a baby about 5 years old. He was covered with blood, streaming from his head. What I found out later from superiors was that these super-nationalistic group of people did not want to surrender to their enemies. This was done on governmental level; government officials gave out hand grenades and weapons so that they could commit suicide...

All these things I have gone through can't be described solely by words. They are so terrible that if I try to think about it again, I get headache. This was a cultural shock. The Japanese people have, in my opinion, completely different ideology about everything. Us Americans are more based on individuals. We, and our government value individual freedom and happiness. But the Japanese are different. They give up individualism, and even their lives, for the good of the nation and government.

I am very sure that my mind is not right. I am constantly hearing things, especially screams and yells, as well as bombing noises. These are not real. These are in my head.

Today, we head for Iwo Jima, hopefully our final destination before Japanese mainland. We are expecting the worst and bloodiest battle there. The scout guys told us that they have several bunkers and the whole island itself is heavily fortified. It is going to be tough.


 * February 25th 1945**

Upon landing, we did not meet much attack. However, just when we got to meadow, machine guns and cannons started shooting at us. We attempted several breakthroughs, but the Japanese were determined to protect last buffer zone. Again I realized that they are never giving up.


 * March 27 1945**

It is over finally. After all those casualties, Iwo Jima fell under the hands of the United State of America. And even more exciting is that I am going home. The war is not over and my friends are staying to fight, but I am going. While in the battle, I was shot two times. Once in the butt, and the other on the leg. They didn't do me much damage, but they decided to send me back home. I feel sorry to leave alone, and I wanted to see the end of the war, but I am more happy to go home and see my mom. I wonder how happy my family and the whole street would be to see me. The war has changed me much. I am not the half man I used to be. I am more mature, and I am tougher. But those bad memories and dreams will chase me to my deathbed. I was once a high school student who was looking for a job, and now I am back in the States with honor, experience, and money. I hope my dad is happy.


 * August 29th 1945**

The war is over, and my brother is back. Now he can tell my family what he has been doing for past two years. Apparently my brother was half forcibly taken by the army two years ago, and they told my family nothing of the reason why he has to go.

During our dinner yesterday, he was like, "guess who ended the Pacific War." We said it's gotta be the American troopers. But amazingly, he says he did. Later I found out that there was a project called Manhattan Project, and they produce atomic bombs. Two of the were dropped in Nagasaki and Hiroshima. KABOOOM! After the mushrooms swept through Japan, the Japanese government surrendered and signed a paper that ended the war.

The Oppenhiemer brothers have save the US, after all. I finally saw my dad proud of us.