August 5, 2008

Today is another field trip day. We start our day touring Fort DeRussy Army Museum. This museum has military history of Hawai'i from King Kamehameha the Great to Desert Storm. There was also an exhibit of paintings by soldiers currently serving in Iraq. The paintings were fantastic. They seemed so real.

While viewing the paintings, a Japanese teacher asked me how the citizens of the U.S. felt about the war in Iraq. He was surprised when I told him the nation is very divided, some people support the war while others do not. He was also surpised many of our soldiers are 18 and 19 years old. He also could not believe that recruiters are allowed to come into our high schools to talk with students about joining the military. He told me the military does not recruit in Japan. The country does not see a need to maintain a large military.

It was a conversation that disturbed me. There are lessons to be learned from a country who provoked war and then suffered so horribly. Today they are a people who believe in peace and not anger or hatred.

The next stop was Hickam Field. This is an active base today, so we had to go through a security check. It was really weird to be stopped at a military check stop.

At the time of the attack, Hickam Field was a 3,000 man barrack housing members of the U.S. Army Air Corps. The buildings and hangars were a focal point of the Japanese attack. This is also the barrack where Jim's Uncle Marshal was stationed.

See the shell marks in the side of the buildings was so shocking. To think these crater like marks still fresh all these years after the attack. Standing outside the buildings, I could vision the low flying planes shooting and the young men scrambling. This site was the most emotional for me. It made me think of the young men on December 7, but also the young men today fighting in Iraq and stationed in Afganistan.

The next stop was Ford Island for stops at the USS Utah Memorial, USS Oklahoma Memorial, and Wheeler Field to view seaplane ramps, the airfield and hangers.

Lunch today was at Fort Shafter with Pearl Harbor Survivors. I sat with Sterling Cale and his wife. Sterling is originally from Moline, IL. He was in the service for 57 years. I enjoyed talking with him. He loved telling his story and was such a jolly man. He also liked to tell jokes.

Mrs. Cale told me she went outside on December 7 to see what all the noise was. She was only wrapped in a towel. A low flying Japanese plane flew over her house and the pilot smiled and waved at her. She said she was so scared and shocked the pilot waved instead of shooting her. It was an incredible story. We all need to remember that civilians have stories about the war to tell as well as men who served in the military.

After lunch we went to the National Memorial Cemetary of the Pacific, better known as "Punchbowl" Cemetary. It is a dormant volcanic crater where Americans who served in the military are buried, including many Pearl Harbor casulalties. It was also known as the "Hill of Sacrifice" to the ancient Hawaiians.

Ranger Dan led a friendship peace ceremony between the Japanese teachers and American teachers. It was pretty powerful for all of us to walk down the row shaking the hands of the Japanese teachers in friendship and peace. The incredible part of the activity is that as we celebrated peace and friendship in Honolulu on August 5th, the people of Japan were celebrating peace at the Hiroshima Peace Memorial ceremonies on August 6th. This is the day the atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima. Very strange coincidence of timing.

We ended the day over looking Honolulu at the top edge of the crater. It was great view of the city and a nice place for reflection of the days events.