ground as fast as you can blink an eye. The only thought in our collective mind was a booby trap; it wasn’t. After securing the area, we were told the Japs were in a tight vise. Trapped by our forc- es, they may attempt to escape via the shore- line. All units were set up to prevent that from happening. All of a sudden, I was in the infan- try. I walked along the perimeter and saw nothing to report, except shallow graves with beer bottle headstones. During a midnight watch on the water- front, my eyes were peeled, weapon ready. A small rat crossed my boot, but I didn’t flinch. About two in the morning, all hell broke loose. Guns started firing all over the area. From my vantage point, perched up on a rise in bright moonlight, I could not be seen, but I could not see, either. I saw no target to shoot. If I started shooting, I would surely give away my position. I remained frozen in place. When the firefight was over, I’m not even sure the enemy was ever there. The shooting could easily have been caused by some of our own trigger-happy guys. When I returned from the war, a deep depression took hold of me. After sorting out all the craziness that went on, it was this inci- dent, I believe, that did the most damage. The experience of being unable to release my own anxiety by firing my weapon caused years of damage. The enemy was also within. I remember spending a couple of hours crawling around the floor with a soldier who was suffering a complete disconnection with reality. He thought he was still in battle, avoiding the enemy, throwing hand grenades, pushing me down with him as he hid in his imaginary world. And maybe it was crazy, but I went along with him. I’m not sure if it was just to humor him as I was trying in vain to get him back to his cot. BACOLOD CITY/ NEGROS 16 Jun, ‘44, I don’t know why, but a whole village of Filipinos took me and another soldier and escorted us in dugout canoes to the near- by island of Negros. Here they entertained us
McArthur Takes Manilla Los Angeles Examiner Headlines Oct, 20, 1944
with a feast; it felt like we were being treated like conquering heroes. Nothing we said or did could persuade them that we were just ordi- nary soldiers. A pig was roasted on an open fire. Banana stalks were cut down and sliced into plates. Every manner of delicacy one could imagine was assembled and set before us. It was an incredible experience. PANAY / ILOILO - JULY ‘45 After Manila was secured, we became part of a force that was sent to invade the island of Panay, south of Manila. During the sea jour- ney, we ran into very heavy seas. Soldiers on our ship were rolling around on the deck seasick. We remained in high seas all night. The Navy staged a violent bomb ardment of the island to soften up the Japanese defend- ers. The next morning our landing ship was one of the ones to hit the beach; it opened up its jaws, and we walked right out. Armed to the teeth, we expected resistance. Instead, we were welcomed by girls with armloads of flowers. The Japs had abandoned the island altogether.
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