a little family history lesson

this weekend I went to B's parents house with the kids. His mother's father-Papa Police- loves seeing the kids and comes over to visit whenever we are there.. This time when we saw him in addition to the treats he brought the kids he showed a bunch of photographs from his time in the Pacific during World War II. Admittedly- I know very very little about the war in the Pacific but I was still completely taken with the images, the stories, and the history.

Papa Police witnessed the flag being raised on Iwo Jima- and has photos from there. He has photos from Japan and Hawaii, as well as photos of his ship. He also has pictures of the armistice signing.

Can you imagine? Being there to witness all of that history? All of those events that changed history? He literally saw history being made.

The photographs and news clippings should be archived and preserved somehow- I just don't know how. His experiences I would love to record for my children so they can read or listen to a first hand account of all of this. That personal view on world history all too often gets lost with generations. I would love to have them remember all of the contributions that were made on an individual basis. I would love to hear more about his personal experiences and personal story. It is part of who the kids are.