Greetings from Guam
By James P. Healy

swimguam@kuentos.guam.net

'I may not have Chamorro blood in my veins but in my heart I'm Chamorro.' - Darryl Doss, former U.S. Marine who landed on Guam July 21, 1944 (Comment made on the Myk Powell radio show, July 15, 1999)

At approximately 8:28 a.m. on July 21, 1944, thousands of young men from the 3rd Marine Division and the 1st Provisional Marine Brigade with the Army's 77th Infantry Division in reserve, began to storm the shores of Guam. Their task: liberate the island's population and recapture the only American soil to be occupied by an Axis power during WWII. The young Marines came ashore on chunks of beach they referred to as Red 1, Red 2, Green, Blue, White 1, White 2, Yellow 1, and Yellow 2, which we now know as the beaches at Asan and Agat.

Twenty days and 1,769 American lives later, on August 10, the island was declared secure. Of those 1,769 soldiers who gave the ultimate sacrifice for their country, eighty-seven percent were Marines. The wounded totaled 6,053 - again, mostly Marines. Approximately 18,400 Japanese soldiers were killed and 1,350 were taken prisoner.

The number of Chamorros and other civilians killed is not precisely known, but estimates place the number at about 400. There were numerous atrocities - rapes, bayoneting, beheadings, tortures and large scale massacres of Chamorros that occurred at the hands of the Japanese soldiers, just prior to, and during the recapture of the island, namely the Faha and Fena cave massacres.

Americans, Japanese, Chamorros, soldiers, sailors, airmen, and civilians, all suffered the ravages and horrors of war.

Now, as we approach the 56th anniversary of Liberation Day (July 21), it is again time to remember, reflect, and give thanks to the veterans, both deceased and living. It is also time to give thanks to Uncle Sam for all the US Government and military has done for this island and her people. Those of us who live here on Guam, especially some of the Chamorros, could easily point out some of the problems caused by Uncle Sam, such as land issues, but why not use this day to say thank you? It is truly hard to imagine what life would currently be like on Guam without the aid and investment of the US Government. Hmmm....actually it would probably be pretty nice - quiet, undeveloped, and pristine. Okay, I'm changing my mind, 'Down with Uncle Sam. Vote Independence!'

No seriously, most of us have so much to be grateful for in our lives, and so much of what we have today is a direct result of the WWII generation. The men and women who served in the armed forces; the women who stayed at home raised the children and worked in the factories building ships, guns, planes, tanks and everything else. For this generation's sacrifices, we enjoy the good life.

The veterans came home and re-built America - the America they wanted and with their values at the forefront. They married and had children in record numbers. (Their children became the Baby Boomer Generation.) As Tom Brokaw wrote in his extraordinary book, The Greatest Generation - ' A grateful nation (via the GI Bill) made it possible for more of them to attend college than any society had ever educated, anywhere. They gave the world new science, literature, art, industry, and economic strength unparalleled in the long curve of history.'

We all have a lot to learn from this generation - the Greatest Generation, starting with their values.

Remembering that most of them grew up in the midst of the Great Depression, their values were forged in desperate and trying times, and thus tend to be very conservative - and rightly so. Words like commitment, loyalty, duty, honor, and responsibility all take on a higher meaning to my father than compared to myself.

Marriage vows contain the well known phrase 'Till death do us part.' That is a commitment, a lifetime commitment. Their duty and responsibility was to make the marriage work and they did in record numbers. For most, divorce was not an option; find a way to keep the family together and make it work...loyalty, duty, honor, commitment, and responsibility. Where are those values in today's marriages?

As I read Tom Brokaw's book, which is a series of stories about the lives of men and women from the WWII Generation, bits of each story described my parents to the 'T'.

As I reflect back now, I can clearly see that the words commitment, loyalty, duty, honor, and responsibility were not just mere 'lofty words.' They are a way of life for my mother and father and their generation. My father's priorities, like the millions like him were/are: God, Country, Family, Community, and finally, Self. That's the order. No discussion, no hemming and hawing. That's it. I am ashamed to say that that is not the order I would put them in...not even close. But they are one generation and I am another.

What I do know is that my generation, and every succeeding generation, may not live by these same honorable and conservative values or hold them in such high esteem as the Greatest Generation - but these values have allowed us the freedom and prosperity we enjoy. And it is precisely because of the WWII generation, that I am allowed to put those words into any order that I wish. And for that, I can never say thank you enough.

Hafa Adai Jim

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