MEMORY -
I knew him as "Uncle Pete" but at one point in his life he was referred to as "A3C Peter DeLuca". He rarely spoke about his years in the service. Even throughout my 2 year enrollment in ROTC, he never shared any of his stories. We soon found out, he had no need too. Everything we needed to know was just around the corner from the laundry room.
APPLICATION -
He left all of his feelings on paper that were dated 1964 and kept in a box hidden away in the garage. No one in the family knew of this box until it was discovered by Mom and I after Pete's passing. Pete's Mother (Grandma Jackie) kept every letter she received while he was away on duty. He must have come across the letters after she passed and decided to keep them, I'm sure in hopes we would find them someday. Tonight, I share with you some segments of his writing that stood out. The appreciation for life, friends and family seemed to intensify in every letter that was written.
The huge stack of "Air Mail" labeled envelopes were in fairly good shape. Some were white, some blue. There were hand written ones as well as typed. Most of them were more than 2 pages long and always began with "Mom, Dad, Tony and Grama" As I open each letter, my mind created improved scenes of Pete writing the letters and his family opening them with great enthusiasm. These letters held more than words on paper, they held the emotions of all whom touched them. As I ran my fingers across Pete's writing, I could just feel the amount of emotion from his end and the DeLuca's. When he wrote, he was apart of that paper, when they received, they became a part of Pete, and tonight as I blog, I feel apart of it all.
May 23, 1963
"Phase one of basic training is over! When I put on that uniform, you can be sure I will wear it with a great deal of pride, not only in myself, but in the U.S Air Force as a whole and all the people who make it the greatest defense force in the history of man .....well I think that's enough flag waiving for now"
May 25, 1963
"Oh by the way, I got your letter today with the ten dollars in it. That was very thoughtful and it did come in handy. If you want to do something for me, send me some Air Mail stamps when you get a chance, I can use them soon"
June 14, 1964
" Thank you again for the money, it flies like water and I don't mean foolish spending. Here is a list of the money we must spend each week :
Dry Cleaning - $2.10
Laundry - $1.20
Haircut - .95
Shows, Bowling and Downtown - $6.00
Toiletries - $1.00
Cigarettes - $1.50
July 10, 1964
I see you all in just a few days. Grama, I expect a homemade spaghetti dinner Wednesday night, you know how much I look forward to this. P.s - GET READY HERE I COME!!!!
August 12, 1964
" Iv'e been here 12 days now, and I've only gotten one letter a piece from you both. I make sure I write you each night and then I go to my mailbox everyday and it's empty! I was so upset about it, I called you tonight at 9:30 and no one was home. I hope you didn't forget you've got a son out here. Some guys could care less and hardly write their parents, but I happen to love you very much and I like to know what you are doing all the time. Let's get on the ball (That's an order!)"
October 12, 1964
" As I sit here this morning, I feel very close to you all. The barracks are very quiet and empty. The little clock on the desk ticks off the seconds even as the one on the kitchen wall is ticking them off now. It's during the quiet times of the day or night that I miss you all the most. The times when no one is around. When there isn't any jokes or loud radios and record players, so that for a short time, I can forget about how much I miss you."
November 9, 1964
" Happy Thanksgiving! Save me a piece of turkey, I'll eat it on New Year's day!"
November 6, 1964
" Well, I didn't make it to the picnic I told you about. What happened was five of us got into this little Volks-Wagon and went into town. Just 5 nutty guys out for a good time. We finally ended up at a Drive-In Movie of all places"
March 11, 1965
" Mom, I got your letters and tape. Please keep writing. When I read your letters, I can just see you sitting at the desk"
REFLECTION -
On this Veterans Day, I have a greater appreciation for those whom have served our country. The emotional roller coaster they experience is just heartbreaking. In between the paper and ink, lies emotions that I'm sure were impossible to put into words. Every letter Pete wrote was written like it could be his last. Every last one being was expressed with a great deal of "realness" and extreme amounts of love.
Times have changes since 1964, but the need for serving citizens will always remain the same. It's important we take the time to personally thank those who put this country 1st and their lives 2nd. Our freedom continues while theirs seems to be taken away. Tonight, as I conclude this particular post, I would like to thank all of the men and women who have served our country and given a piece of their life to each and every one of us. THANK YOU!!!! Of course I couldn't end this off properly if I didn't give special thanks to the man whom which this blog was inspired ..... Uncle Pete. "Thank you for serving, thank you for writing and thank you for saving. Your long lost box of Air Force Mail, has found a new home in my heart. I am at peace to know, that someone who once was restricted to military grounds, can now be everywhere, all the time. You finally have the freedom you've always deserved. No need for mail while we are temporarily apart .... YOU ARE.... all that surrounds me and that in itself will keep me connected until we meet again . I love you and miss you dearly"
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