for Alfred

[Guest guest]

Hi Alfred,

Your mother would be proud of you, stepping up and doing your duty to

your country. Don't be so sure another of the Marines could have done

more than you have done. Remember that movie " It's a Wonderful Life "

where a guy thinks the world would have been better off if he had not

been born? Then he SEES what he has done, what influence he has had, and

the lives he touched just by being alive and himself. So don't sell

yourself short. You probably have influenced a lot of people you don't

even know about. You're here for a reason.

Thank you for your kind words. You see, my mother would be ashamed of

me if I allowed other women's son carry my share of the responsibility.

I walk on this earth today because 7,000 marines who perished to secure

Iwo Jima so that B-29s would have a place to land for fuel and for

repairs after having sustained battle damages. I had three emergency

visits there and visited Mount Suribachi. I am sure and without dispute

that at least one of those marines could have contributed more to the

society than I have.