Dear Folks, I Have Paid A Debt, August 3, 1958, 38th Parallel South Korea, Love, Robert

Dear Folks,         3 Aug 58

  Today is the third
of Aug, this is the month
I leave Korea, Saynora,
goodbye. Even with
just 13 days left it
it tough. We have
our annual big inspection
the sixth of Aug. We
have been working pretty
hard for it, but I don't
mind because the
harder I work the faster
the day goes by. My arms
and hands, my clothes
stay dirty with dust
oil and whatever you have.
You have to change clothes
at least once a day.
This army is great
you work all week long
for about 14 hours to
get ready for some
goofball to just walk
by and just look at
your equipment for
about 5 seconds.
  The hutch where I
live has a capacity
for about 25 people there
are four of us who
stay in there. I feel
good though we got two
brand new recruits
in just fresh out of
basic training and
they walk around like
they don't know what
in the hell's coming off.
  I listen to a good
joke the other day. My
platoon sergeant came
up and told me that
I would make corporal
this month. I just
about laughed in his
face. In this company
you just don't make
rank unless you
bow down and that
is something to me
which is beyond the
call of duty.
  I think the boat
which I will catch
will probably go
to Seattle, Washington
which is OK with me
just as long as it's
one of the 49 States.
I think that we will
probably stop off in
Japan. If we do and
the sun is shinning
I am going to take a
lot of pictures. You
know what I want
when I get back, a
good steak, about 3 or
four good cold beers
and my bed. I want
to sleep in that nice
bed without having
to get up and go on
guard or out into the
field during the middle
of the night. It might
not sound like much
to you but it seems
like a luxury to me.
For Twenty months now
I have had to wake
up about 5:30 and
be out in a formation
at 6 o'clock. Did you
know that every night
at 11:30 some officer
comes through my hutch
and check to see if
everybody is in bed. Did
you know my platoon
Sergeant has a 6th
grade education, did
you know that the medical
corps guarantees your
health over here for
12 months. There is
one thing that I have
learned to do since
being in the Army
and I think it is an
important lesson, that
is to survive and live
wherever you may
be. I have met and
become good friends
with a lot of guys
in the army over here.
I have seen guys so
drunk worst that you
have really seen, and I
have seen the same guys
from all walks of life
get woke up at about
2 o'clock Sunday morning
saying theres an alert
on, moving out during
the black of the night
over rugged mountain
roads which are either
icy or muddy and
setting up 80 4.2 mile
mortars capable of
killing hundreds of
people in one barrage.
  Guys who hate the
army, would never
stay one minute past
their time. This to me
is the backbone of the
US Army. I have just
about finished my
service to my country,
but it is not to the
army. I have perhaps
lost 2 years of valuable
time to a person of
my age, but I have
paid a debt, and
maybe later on I may
be called upon to
fight a war. I hope
not, but I will
stand up to anybody,
anybody who thinks
different about guys like
me who were drafted.
  I got drafted into
the army which
might have been a
mistake, I cannot
say yes or no, But
I do know this
whenever you receive
this letter from
that day forth do not write
a letter after it because
I will be on my
way home. You
probably will get maybe
one or two more letters
from me, but they will
not be from this company.
my port of of departure.
                    Love, Robert