Spitball Army

[Letter postmarked on 11 August 1944 at 1 p.m. at Jamaica, New York. Addressed to Mrs. Richard N., Berwyn, Illinois. No return address inscribed on the envelope.]

Aug 10, 1944

My Dearest Darling,

How are you sweetheart, I sure hope you aren’t as warm as I am. Well, hon, at long last I finally received some of you wonderful letters I have been waiting for. I received your August 2nd letter, which was a honey! Yes, hon, hearing your voice was a thrill for me also, for sure. I know I will be home for at least a month, hon – red tape is all that is holding me up. I am glad Nadine can get some use out of your dress, hon – tell her I would like to see her wedding. I sure am glad Mr. Johnson feels that way about your being with me when I do get home, hon! Tell him I really would enjoy meeting a good man like him, hon! What did you mean, hon, Ellen didn’t know anything about anything about marriage? Do you feel that you do – ho ho ho. I sure don’t feel like I know any thing about it. Where did you pick up all your experience, hon? Ha ha. This was a wonderful letter, sweet. August 3rd letter. War job workers schedule – the schedule is very true of some workers, hon, but not very funny! It certainly doesn’t represent you, sweet, not at all, you little hustler. Sometimes I get so mad at you working as hard as you do. I don’t know where I am now myself, hon – that is, on the map. All I know is that I am somewhere on Long Island and it’s all mixed up. August 4th letter. Happy day, I sure am mad at the telephone people for fowling my anniversary call to you up, but you weren’t home anyway, right? Yes, hon, I know your intentions to telegraph me were good and I appreciate it and I hope you know that my intentions to telephone you were good – believe me, hon – you can ask the nurse & tell people if you don’t. They will tell you how mad I was when I couldn’t talk to you that day and was I ever burning and stomping ground here, hon – the air was perfectly blue all over where ever I was, for sure!! Someday hon, you will realize how lucky a girl you are to still have a husband, for sure, hon. I refused to die out there on that raft because I loved you too much to leave you – not even death could separate us at that time. That’s all I could think of as I was slowly bleeding and freezing little by little. “I can’t die now, what would my honey do if I did. I love her too much to die!” I was bleeding profusely in 4 places – 2 in the head, and I was froze from my waist down and still all I could think of was you, sweet – that’s how much I love you. That was a beautiful thought in your telegram, hon – I loved it and it’s just like you to think that and that’s why I wouldn’t leave you. August 7th letter. I’ll bet Ed Music will have a big head on him now, for sure. I’ll bet those pictures were interesting! At times, I get so impatient waiting to get home to you, I would like to jump out of my skin, sweet. Yes, hon, I sure feel sorry for Dot Spretzma and Marge – they are both nice kids. August 8th – the last of your letters. I would call you on the telephone every day, hon, but I don’t want to buy the Bell Telephone Co. – do you? Ha ha – I think we have ½ interest now, right? What do you mean, hon – “You hope Nadine isn’t as tough as you was.” I can’t see why any girls would be afraid to get married – tell me about it more – draw me a picture or something, hon. I hope I have time to write to-morrow.

I love you
Dick xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx