A Soldiers Story: Somewhere Over the Rainbow

December 24th, 1941

Valley City, North Dakota

8:35 P.M.

The snow fell softly onto the ground, the large flakes sticking onto anything it touches. The city streets lay empty, the soft lights from the buildings illuminated the cold, lonely road. One man quietly walked down the streets, his breath condensing into the cold air. As he walked, he couldn't help but look at the empty stores as he passed by them. He then noticed a newspaper blowing through the winter wind. Grabbing the paper, he looked at the headline and gave a soft sigh.

UNITED STATES DECLAIRS WAR AFTER JAPANESE ATTACK!

John grunted as he stuffed the paper underneath his jacket to protect it from the wind. The news of Pearl Harbor had shook the sleepy little city to it's core. Many of his fellow classmates were outraged at the news of what had happened. Many of his friends, including himself, had planned to join the Army once '42 rolled around. But for now, all they could do was wait.

Trudging through the streets, John covered his face from the winds blasting into his body. He passed by closed shops and businesses until he came across a building that he had lived in nearly his entire life. The building in front of him was named the Valley Hotel, which was built by his father after the first World War. He had designed it to not only be a functioning hotel, but a stable home where he could raise a family.

Opening the door, he was greeted with a blast of warm air from the hotel. The lobby was empty, the staff having left earlier in the night. John walked up the stairs behind the counter, which led to the place where John had lived his entire life. "Home..." John thought as he opened the door into the house.

As he walked in, he could smell the warm food from the stove, which caused him to take a deep whiff of it. "Looks like Mom made turkey tonight," John thought as he hanged up his coat and began to walk into the home. However, before he could, his mothers voice ringed throughout the house.

"JOHN! YOU BETTER TAKE OFF THOSE BOOTS BEFORE YOU STEP INTO THIS HOUSE! I JUST CLEANED THE FLOORS," she shouted to him. Sighing, John kicked his boots off and walked into the home. The fire was burning bright in the living room, providing warmth for all of those who were near it. John's father sat on the arm chair, reading his newspaper. Walking into the kitchen, he saw his mother placing fat chunks of turkey on three plates.

Grinning, John crept up behind his mother while she was placing the last hunks of turkey on the plate. Suddenly, he placed his hands on her shoulder and shouted, "BOO!"

"GAAAH!" his mother cried, jumping in the air with shock, earning a laugh from John. Turning around, his mothers shocked face turned into a disapproving look, but one that held amusement within it. "John! You should know better then to sneak up on your mother like that!"

"I'm sorry mom," he answered, still chuckling after what had happened," but I couldn't help myself. You were the perfect target."

Sighing, his mother gave him a small smirk and answered, "Yeah, I suppose I was in the perfect position."

Walking into the kitchen, John's father asked, "Is dinner ready yet?"

Walking over to him, John's mother gave him a peck on the cheek, replying, "Yes dear, I was just about to call you when John scared me."

Looking over at him, his father asked, " How high did she jump this time?"

"At least two feet!" he replied, earning a laugh from everyone in the room. Once the laughter subsided, they all took their seats and began to enjoy their well deserved dinner.

John slid into his pajamas as he looked at his cozy bed. It's blue sheets looked inviting, practically begging John to jump into it. Smirking to himself, John gave out a long yawn. He walked over to his bed, and was about to jump in when he heard the door to his room open. Looking over his shoulder, his mother entered the room. "Hey mom, come to give me a good night kiss?"

"John..." his mother started, looking at him with her soft, blue eyes, "We need to talk."

John's face fell instantly. What happened? Did he do something wrong? Wanting to find out, John followed his mother. As they entered the living room, John's father sat on his recliner waiting for them to arrive. When his eyes fell upon his son, he gave him a sad look. Nodding to the couch, John and his mother sat down. A moment of silence passed between them, with only the clock's soft 'tick' could be heard.

"Did something happen?" John asked.

His father looked at him, the eyes that he was so used to seeing was filled with sadness. "No John, we just need to talk." His father straightened his posture and stared at his son directly.

"Have I ever told you how I met your mother?"

John looked at his mother, "Yeah, you told me that you were childhood sweethearts and that you proposed to her right before you went on a business trip to Europe."

"Well," his father began," that story is not entirely true." His eyes widened in surprise, giving his father a look that urged him to continue. "While it was true that I proposed to her at that dock, I was not going on a business trip." His father pulled out a small box from under the table and placed it in front of him. Curious, John picked it up and opened it, only for his eyes to widen in shock. Sitting in that box was an old photo of men dressed up in uniforms. They were smiling, but John could tell that they held pain in their eyes. Furthermore, in the middle of the photo was a young man who was about his age. He was the one who was smiling the most, but his eyes held more pain then the others. When he finally placed the pieces together, he looked at his father seeing a sad look in his eyes. "I proposed to your mother at the harbor because I was leaving for war."

The weight of those words hit him like a brick. After all this time, his father had actually fought in the first World War. John finally understood why his father was so against his attempts to join the war. Whatever his father had seen, it had scarred him so much that he was afraid to let anybody else follow this path. "John, I need you to look at me," his father spoke. Father and son both looked into each others eyes as John's father continued, "Son, I was just like you all of those years ago. When I heard the call to fight for something greater then myself, I signed up with my friends. We wanted to go on an adventure, we wanted to be heroes."

John's father began to tear up as he recalled those dark memories, but he continued, "We weren't ready. Dear god, we were not ready for what the war had in store for us. I watched as good friends of mine, most of whom I grew up with, were torn to shreds by artillery. I was lucky that I even got to go home." His father placed a hand on his shoulder , staring deep into his sons eyes before saying, "I know that I can't change your decision, but I just wanted to ask; are you sure that you want to do this?"

John looked back at his father, his breath becoming shaky as he tried to hold back tears. "Y-Yes father," John responded, "I'm sure that I want to do this."

His mother suddenly began to cry prompting her son to comfort her as best as he can. Eventually, his father walked over and joined the group hug. The family sat there for a while, relishing in the feeling of being together.

"I'm going to get out of this alive," John said, looking at his father with a new found confidence.

"I promise."