Holy crow, I didn't realize that its been over a month since I've made a post. I'll try to do better. I finally finished my last memoirs book and am now on to the history of CPS during WWII which was written in the 1950's. It is a reference that I've seen cited in almost every other book I've read on the topic. Its a great book so far but pretty dry.
My family brought some pictures from my Grandfather's time at camp that I scanned into the computer. I posted a lot of them on the photos and other media page of my blog. There are so many questions I'd love to ask him now about those pictures. I'd love to know more about the projects they were working on, the irrigation projects and Grandpa's work as a milk inspector. My Dad had also saved some post cards that he wrote back to family. They were so fun to read. I think Grandpa took a trip to Florida during his time at CPS. The post card was from Florida and he talked about eating shrimp and taking a fishing charter. My Grandfather's brother may have been stationed/docked there during the war (?).
There were a few things I was thinking about while reading and looking through all the pictures. One thing that I hadn't really thought about before was that whether you were a soldier in the war or a CO, you had no idea how long the war would last when you went in. They left their previous lives and went into a very unknown situation and couldn't make any plans for the future. For a person like me who likes to have some kind of fun activity or trip to look forward to, that uncertainty is hard to conceive.
Another thing that I learned was that one of Grandpa's brothers joined the navy around the time Grandpa became a CO. It made me wonder how the family handled both perspectives. I asked Dad if he remembered any tension or if each view was accepted. Dad said he didn't remember any tension. I LOVE that! Made me so proud to be a part of a family that accepts different views. My Dad became a CO during Vietnam while his brother served in the military. Grandpa supported both decisions. My Dad had to serve the county for 2 years. My dad chose a position in social work because of it. I'm so blessed to be part of a family that has served in so many ways.
One last comment. One of the most common misconceptions I've come across about COs is that they were mostly draft dodgers. There may have been a few, yes. Most of the stories that I've read of men who described the other people they lived with at the camps were far from it. The majority of COs were very willing to sacrifice their own lives; they didn't believe in sacrificing someone else's.
